Book Review of Gracie and Gary
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The Children’s Book Review
Gracie and Gary
Written and illustrated by Michael Ward
Ages: 4-6 | 52 Pages
Publisher: PegasusElliot Mackenzie / Nightingale Press (2025) | ISBN: 978-1-78788-486
What to Expect: Home, coping with change, resilience, cats, friendship.
Beautifully capturing the inner life and personality quirks of kittens, this picture book invites readers to see their pet cat through different, less human eyes.
Gracie may be just a kitten, but she’s very good at learning from the world around her. When she’s adopted by a little girl named Rosie, Gracie gets used to her new home quickly—but she can’t help missing her old life in the barn where she was born. So, when she meets another cat who is going on a journey to find his home, she decides to join him—it sounds like fun! Gracie and her new friend travel together and have interesting adventures, but soon Gracie decides it’s time to go back to her home with Rosie. Then, something unexpected happens—a new cat appears at Rosie’s house, who always seems to be watching Gracie but can never be caught. Gracie has met her own reflection! Rosie names the reflected cat Gary, and Gracie decides he can stay—after all, sometimes it’s nice to have a cat friend around, even if you’re not going on fun adventures!
Gracie may be infuriating in her lack of consideration for her human family, but she is also sweet, curious, and affectionate—the perfect feline companion. Readers are sure to empathize with Rosie’s love for her pet and her worry when Gracie goes missing. The omniscient narrator provides both humor and reassurance as they describe Gracie’s reasoning and offer commentary on cat thinking and cat feelings, helping the reader feel certain that, despite Rosie’s worry, Gracie will be just fine. The loose, expressive, hand-drawn ink-and-watercolor artwork is childlike and sketchy in style, making each scene feel dynamically alive and intimate at the same time.
Perfect for any reader who has ever wondered what their cat is thinking, this sweet picture book reminds us that our pets—while they love us—have lives and perspectives of their own.
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About the Author
Originally from England, Michael Ward, aka Michael Hector Addison Ward, is a family man and long-time New England resident in an old Mill town in Massachusetts. He travels locally and enjoys taking pictures, writing music, and indeed stories that his surroundings inspire.
Early life loves of art, music, and writing led to him writing and illustrating a children’s book called Gracie and Gary, published by Pegasus Publishers/Nightingale Books. He has since set to audio the whole story of this little gray cat and her adventures from the farmyard to her friend Rosie’s parents’ house. And beyond.
This all changed the way that Gracie and Rosie looked at the world, especially when Gary showed up.
The book is available worldwide as a hardcover from most major booksellers, as well as online at Amazon and Pegasuspublishers.com.
For more information, visit www.gracieandgary.com or email Michael at [email protected].
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