No Kiss for Mother

I have a real soft spot in my heart for willful kitties - which is to say, of course, cats in general - so this tale of Piper Paw, a boisterous young boy-cat who finds his mother's affectionate caresses more than a little distressing, really tickled my funny bone! Jolted out of a pleasant dream, in

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which he had just cornered a purple mouse, by Mother Paw's kiss, Piper starts his day in something of a snit, and things only get worse between them, as the day progresses. When Mrs. Velvet Paw finally goes over the line, kissing Piper and calling him by pet names in full view of his school friends, a real argument ensues, and Piper finds himself on the receiving end of a hearty slap! Will things ever be the same, for mother and son...?

With one friend describing No Kiss for Mother as one of his favorite children's books ever, and another decrying its use of corporal punishment - not only does Mother Paw slap Piper, in a fit of temper, but Father Paw threatens to spank him, at the breakfast table - I wasn't sure what I'd make of it. I imagine that many children will identify with Piper's desire to be a grown up, his efforts to distance himself from a parental figure that is a little bit too clingy. I also imagine that some parents will object, not only to the fighting, but to the cigar-smoking. I don't know what it says about me, but I wasn't unduly disturbed myself, as the violence here really struck me as being of the fairy-tale sort: real, but also unreal. I was, moreover, so charmed by the Tomi Ungerer's illustrations - done in pencil? - that I was willing to overlook a lot!

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