• Age: 2 to 6
• Grade: p

Morning comes with hum and hurry,
Clatter, patter, scramble, scurry.
Who can sleep through all of that?
Who can sleep? It's Nat the Cat!

Nat has a talent for sleeping all day long. Name any place in the house and Nat can sleep in, on, under, or sprawled over it. In fact, Nat is so devoted to slumber that the imaginative antics of a crazy kitten don’t seem to bother him one bit, until…
When the nighttime quiet falls, when strange shadows fill the halls…
Now Nat is all fired up and ready to go! Will the kitten be able to keep up, or is it time for her to find the perfect place to settle down for a wee nap? Victoria Allenby’s rhythmic verse perfectly accompanies Tara Anderson’s irresistible art. Cat lovers young and old will delight in this not-quite-ready-for-bedtime treat.

"Young readers will enjoy the brief rhymed text and find themselves chiming in on the repeated refrain, "Nat the cat can sleep like that!" And they will especially relish telling the unwritten story depicted in the large, mixed-media illustrations....[W]hether sleeping or cavorting through the house, these two kitties are sure to win youngsters' hearts."—School Library Journal

Victoria Allenby has been writing poetry and stories for as long as she can remember. Her debut picture book, Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That, won the 2014 Preschool Reads Award and was nominated for the 2015 SYRCA Shining Willow Award. She has followed up the success of this debut with the critically acclaimed early readers Timo's Garden, Timo's Party, and Timo Goes Camping, as well as several picture books, including Shape Up, Construction Trucks! which has earned multiple starred reviews, and the 2021 title Listen Up! Train Song. Victoria lives in Toronto, Ontario.

 

Victoria Allenby's profile page

A folk artist and award-winning illustrator who trained at the Ontario College of Art and Design, Tara Anderson is known for her lively and humorous animal illustrations. Her most recent work includes spot illustrations of a quirky little hamster in Sapphire the Great and the Meaning of Life, and beautiful coloured-pencil illustrations of a boisterous family of rhinos in Rhino Rumpus. Her debut That Stripy Cat was followed with Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That, which won the 2014 Preschool Reads Award and was nominated for the 2015 SYRCA Shining Willow Award. The antics of Nat and his kitten friend are inspired by the cats who roam her farmhouse in Tweed, Ontario, where she lives with her husband and daughter.

Tara Anderson's profile page

• Short-listed, SYRCA Shining Willow Award
• Commended, Bank Street Best Book
• Commended, Canadian Children's Book Centre Best Books for Kids & Teens selection
• Winner, Preschool Reads Award

The simple rhyming text listing the odd (yet realistic) places Nat can sleep during the daytime and all the silly mischief he and his black-and-white kitten sidekick get up to at night will hook young listeners. The watercolor, acrylic and pencil illustrations of floppy, goggle-eyed Nat and his buddy are a just-right pairing. Good kitty fun that will demand repeated reads.

Kirkus Reviews

This rhyming story has a playful tone....Nat the Cat is a good choice for both a preschool storytime and for bedtimes, and young ones will especially find the bright illustrations sweet and charming.

Resource Links

Young readers will enjoy the brief rhymed text and find themselves chiming in on the repeated refrain, "Nat the cat can sleep like that!" And they will especially relish telling the unwritten story depicted in the large, mixed-media illustrations....[W]hether sleeping or cavorting through the house, these two kitties are sure to win youngsters' hearts."

School Library Journal

The mood of the book is playful, easily appealing to a preschool audience. Victoria Allenby's title is a perfect choice for bedtime and storytimes for young children. Highly Recommended.

CM Magazine

...a well-rhymed debut picture book....Sweet without being saccharine, this is a good choice for group read-alouds.

Booklist

Tara Anderson's whimsical art lulls kids - and kitten - to sleep, making it a lovely bedtime read....Parents and teachers will love Allenby's word play. Her use of repetition and alliteration is calming and her steady cadence is mesmerizing.

The National Reading Campaign

If you are looking for a picture book to enjoy with your little cat lover, look no further than Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That...[a] whimsical rhyming book filled with playful and fun illustrations.

Baltimore Public Library

Looking for a good bedtime book? Check out Nat the Cat Can Sleep Like That by Victoria Allenby. This cat can sleep through anything!

Chirp Magazine