I love Thao Lam, but couldn’t see the appeal of this book. I’m not sure what a child would get out of this. Definitely not a read aloud for story time.

My Cat Looks Like My Dad is a hilarious and adorably illustrated story about a father who is very similar to his cat, both in appearance and behavior. There is a twist at the end which is surprising and fun. I absolutely loved this book and the fact that the illustrations look straight out of a children's book from the 70s or 80s.

Note: I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley. I was not compensated in any other fashion for the review and the opinions reflected below are entirely my own. Special thanks to the publisher and author for providing the copy.

Such a cute book! I really enjoyed the art and patterns. The child very much enjoyed this book as well.

I received a free ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was a cute picture book with a fun twist at the end. The pictures are fun and the text flows well. It's a great storytime read.

Sweet, funny story with a surprise twist that examines who we consider our 'family'. The collage-style art is unique and really pops, another great title from Lam.

Thank you #netgalley for giving me a copy of #mycatlookslikemydad to review. This book looks very quirky and doesn't disappoint throughout. I love the retro look of the pictures. I thought the book was funny and may end up being more for the parents than the kids, but both age groups will love it.

My Cat Looks Like My Dad by Thao Lam is a delightfully illustrated book. The story felt a bit slow and it didn’t pick up the pace enough for my audience of kids (aged three to seven.) The discussion after the book easily had the kids more excited than the book itself.

Feedback from the kids
Q. What did you like? A. The cat on the dad’s head. The toilet paper. Running away from the skunk.
Q. What could have made it better? A. Seeing who the mom is, showing what the mom looked like. (The atypical narrator/pov/twist threw them off, so we cleared things up by talking it through and rereading it. They still felt that it was confusing.)
Q. What else would you have liked to see in this book? A. More cats and dads that look like each other. Cats that look like moms. Other animals that look like moms and dads. Other animals that look like kids/teachers/grandmas/babies/old people/<insert human type>!

Thao Lam’s artwork is the highlight of the book. The patterns and designs feel like a throwback to times when wallpaper was all the rage and floral upholstery was the style- in a good way! The story was a bit of a flop for my audience and for me, but none of us disliked the book overall.

Thanks to NetGalley and Owlkids Books for the opportunity to read this book. My review is honest and unbiased. #NetGalley #MyCatLooksLikeMyDad

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Princess Fuzzypants here: Okay. I confess. Even though I am a Maine Coon cat, I am also just a big kid at heart. I love children’s story with cats as the main characters. I have to tell you I love this one.
Not only is the premise cute- the similarities between the author’s father and his cat, but the artwork is simply magical. I found myself smiling throughout the book at the cute pictures and words. I can see this as an addition to the bedtime books for any animal lover, especially one with kitties in the house.
It is just a sweet book. I give it five purrs and two paws up.

This book is adorable and full of laughs. It has the right amount of text to keep the pages turning and the illustrations are quite appealing. Kids and parents will both love this story about family.

A totally bizarre picture book about how a child's cat looks and acts like it's a dad and how the dad looks and acts like the cat. Humorus for sure.

I love the art style in this picture book, which all appear to be made of paper cutouts. The comparison of the cat and the dad will be great for reading to Pre-K and kindergarten audiences, who will also be surprised by the reveal at the end. I'm not sure how well the art will work at a distance when reading to a larger group, but close up you can get a lot of detail and nuance, as well as some unexpected perspectives. Delightful.

Do you like this book?
Yeah because I love kitties and mustaches.

What's your favorite part of the book?
When they're stinky! And then they get to play in the toilet paper.

What do you think of the cover?
I like it because the kitty is on his head!





First I want to say that this was sent as an ARC to us from Netgalley, because of that it's incredibly difficult to read on the kindle. It's all messed up.

However, this is a really cute book where a little kiddo compares their dad with their cat. They are very similar in most ways.

The artwork is adorable, the writing is really well done. And it definitely made us giggle more than once.

Super cute book about families and how even when we look different from our parents because of something like adoption we are able to still find similarities that join us together.

The narrator’s cat looks just like their dad. They even enjoy the same things, like naps and boxes! The narrator looks more like their mom— and they both love dancing. But really, a family is a family no matter how it might look.

Pet owners are often compared to their animals and, for some, the similarities run deep. That’s certainly the case here in the quirky world author/illustrator Thao Lam has produced. Through meticulous paper collage, she compares the dad and his cat practically with a wink. These two are depicted as so similar it’s almost catoonish. However, Lam’s use of soft colors on mostly white pages make her collages pop while grounding them in sentimental realness. It reads like a family scrapbook.

The text itself is sparse, letting the illustrations take most of the work. It’s effective, with only a basic sentence here and there to prod the story along as the narrator talks about their family.

What puts this book over the edge is its twist ending. With subtle clues along the way, the ending might be obvious for some. And yet, the final spread is adorably surprising, reinforcing that a family unit can be comprised of whoever so long as love binds them.

Adorable! Drawings are cute, story is beyond cute and so unexpected! Had the kids (and me) laughing for the whole book! Definitely will need to own at least one copy of this book!!

This is a fun book for kids and adults, which is important when you know you will be reading it over and over and over! The real gem of this book is the illustrations, enjoyable for kids and parents alike. I also like the idea of bio mimicry and this is a fun way for kids to access that animal, human connection. The best part of this book is the end, the message that family is what you make it- which is so helpful considering the diversity of what it means to be a family these days.

A simple but adorable story about the comparison between her dad and her cat. Great illustrations that are a collage of colors and patterns. My younger kids love the pictures and story and a simple message relays a great truth.

Ahhhhhhhh!!!! I love this so much! From the art style (which I've never seen executed so well) to the content this book wraps itself around my heart and gives it a big hug. I'm blown away.

This was not kindle formatted. A lot of the time I can puzzle through when there is formatting issues but this one the pictures where in jumbles so I couldn't even make up something to read to my kiddo.

That was a twist! A book about family. Not a traditional one, but still a family. I loved the cut-out collage illustrations!