Review Detail

Super Spinach (Adventures in Fosterland #2)

Kids Fiction 454

It's not a bird, it's SUPER CAT!

July 12, 2022

Overall rating

4.3

Plot

4.0

Characters

5.0

Writing Style

4.0

Illustrations/Photos (if applicable)

4.0

Spinach is a kitten waiting patiently in the shelter to be adopted, but when other animals get blue cards and soon find families, she is worried that her blue card will mean she won't leave the shelter soon. In fact, it means that she needs to have a medical procedure to correct her undersized rib cage that is pressing on her lungs and making it hard to breathe. When she comes out of the anesthesia, she realizes that she has a plate on her chest. Combined with the sock vest that her new foster human makes her, Spinach is sure that she has super powers. Helping her in her endeavors is another cat in the foster home, a roly poly kitten named Chickpea. Together, the two have many adventures, like taking a trip down the laundry chute, rescuing a bunch of kittens from a warmer, and using their super powers to predict when their meals will come. They are very invested in the idea that Spinach has special abilities conferred by his plate and super socks, so when that is removed, the two must realize that their powers lie within their hearts.

Good Points

Based on two kittens that were fostered by KittenLady.Org (whose pictures appear on the back cover of the book), this is a fun look at an imagined perspective of a cat who has special needs. Young readers will learn a little about pectus excavatum, Spinach's condition of having a small rib cage, and see that some animals need medical help in the same way that some humans do. I can see young readers being interested in helping rescue cats after reading this book.

There are lots of silly moments where Spinach and Chickpea try to use their "super powers" that will appeal to readers of Bentley's Magic Kitten series, and who enjoy animal books with some fantasy elements. The two show a collaborative effort that will appeal to readers of Citro's Zoey and Sassafras books, and I half expected Spinach to solve more of a mystery than just the kittens in the incubator. Other readalikes include McKay's Lulu and the Cat in the Bag, or one of my all time favorties, Willem's Diva and Flea.

These books have a highly addictive quality due to the fast paced plot, engaging characters, and charming illustrations, so it's goo to know that the third book, Baby Badger (about a kitten named Badger, not an actually badger), comes out in January 2023.