They all saw a cat... but what did the cat see? Seeing and Being Seen. Recommended for ages 3 and up

'The cat walked through the world, with its whiskers, ears and paws...
and the child saw A CAT,
and the dog saw A CAT,
and the fox saw A CAT, Yes, they all saw the cat
The cat walked through the world with its whiskers, ears and paws...

.... A CHILD and A DOG and A FOX...
....
The cat knew them all, and they all knew the cat.
And the cat walked through the world, with its whiskers, ears, and paws, then it came to the water...
and imagine what it saw?'

Author and Illustrator Brendan Wenzel does a fantastic job illustrating the cat in the eyes of each animal observing it as it walks through the world - it is monster-like for the tiny mouse; all hair for the flea, a strange shadow for the worm and all pixels for the bee. And of course, there is the cat's reflection, barely recognisable as the cat we know.



A cat is a cat is a cat. THE CAT remains the same but we all see the cat differently, based on our own perspective, position and the 'glasses' we are wearing. And the cat walks through the world being observed by all the animals - predator and prey- from up in the sky to down in the earth..until it comes to the water and the reader is asked to imagine what the cat sees there.

We see A REFUGEE, but what does the refugee see?
We see A MUSLIM, but what does the Muslim see?
We see A BLOND GIRL, but what does the blond girl see?
We see an  OLD MAN WITH A STICK,  but what does the old man see?

What's lovely about this book is that it indirectly also focuses its gaze on all those who see THE CAT - and lists their names in capital letters.
YOU and ME - we see and are seen. But what we see is not necessarily how we are seen!

But I do believe the way others see us influences our self-image. There is a risk in simplifying, the author wants to say. Each person is a complex being with many layers. There is a human need to simplify, categorise and understand. Hence, the popularity of stereotypes. But generalisations - good and bad - are never defining and humans (and animals) defy them every day.