I love the illustrations, they are adorable and I showed the book to my 1.5 year old on my phone and he kept grabbing for it. For us, the story is a little long/ lots of words per page but I think it would be a good story for a 4+ yr old child. I liked the rhyming it helps with flow and engagement. It was a little awkward to read the font sometimes on an iPhone.

This is a sweet book about a naughty little kitten named Mitten who is always trying to play tricks on a much more mature Siamese cat named Nessie. Nessie is 100-years old with beautiful blue eyes. She's travelled the world, and has many stories to tell! Baffled, Mitten cannot understand why she doesn't fall for his shenanigans, after all he is the neighbourhood prankster, but for the life of him he cannot catch Nessie in one of his antics.

When he asks her why she calmly licks her paws looks Mitten straight in the eyes and responds... because she's "been there, done that!'

The narrative flows in rhyme and the illustrations are fantastic. Kids will learn a valuable life lesson. An old Greek proverb sums it up perfectly... "age brings experience, and a good mind wisdom". Nessie therefore is way ahead of Mitten's tricks so everything he tries is uneventful towards her as she has seen it and done it all.

She goes on and encourages Mitten to use each of his nine lives to the utmost. She tells him stories of her past life adventures and invites him along when her next exciting adventure unfolds. I love the book and highly recommend it.

Rizwan Asad’s City Kitties is a delightful and gentle little adventure about life experiences. I love the fun and easy-to-read rhymes and Andy Catling’s expressive and lovely illustrations.

Mischievous little kitten Mitten loves to play pranks on the animals he meets. However, one cat named Nessie never falls for his tricks. One day, Mitten asks why he can’t catch Nessie and she answers with a fantastical tale of experience and adventure.

This is such a cute, humorous, and imaginative book! I loved traveling from Egypt to Thailand and even Paris with Nessie. The characters are fascinating and relatable. I love sassy experienced Nessie and feisty Mitten. Their relationship is adorable and I would love to see more of their interactions and adventures because this would make a great series!

I really admire that Asad successfully maintains a great storyline through continuous and nicely flowing rhymes. The rhyming narrative is easy-to-follow, fun, and catchy. Kids will have a wonderful time reading the lines aloud. However, there is a lot of lengthy text so this book may be more suitable for slightly older children. I also think there could have been a bit more development as the story ended a little too abruptly. I like the message of treasuring certain experiences and I appreciate that the writing isn’t too heavy-handed or trite. However, I do think Asad could have made these themes and messages a bit clearer.

Catling’s colourful full-page illustrations are so fun! The are really cute and nicely detailed. I love the soft and bright colours. I also love how distinct and expressive the cats are!


🐱🐱🐱1/2 kitties out of 5!

Mittens the kitten loves to prank, but Nessie has been there, done that and is much too clever. When Mittens wants to know why he can never get Nessie, she tells him about all the adventures she's had. Her story is accompanied by some lively, detailed illustrations that kids will enjoy.

The concept is great, but the story and word choices are occasionally sacrificed in service of the rhyming structure. As a result, some lines can trip a reader up when the meter suddenly changes or an odd phrasing is used. Also, the poem is quite long for the usual age group for picture books. Each page has at least 8 full lines of text and pre-K kids may struggle to stay engaged that long. This may be more appropriate for early grades.

Many thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review!

I guess it's fun to see such a long poem – quite well-sustained, at that – about a cat's marvellous adventures as told to the feisty kitten who wants to get one-up on her. The illustrations are perfectly reasonable, too – it's just the book didn't quite deliver, lacking a little oomph, a sparkle, a bit of what the cameoing Napoleon would call a je-ne-sais-quoi. If it's really about what the blurb says it is – the comforts of the least remarkable situation being the most memorable – then that can almost feel tacked on, and it didn't really come across when reading that that was the point. Certainly pleasant enough to explore at least once, I can't see this as a perennial choice.

*I received this book for free through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*

Too cute!

This is a great kid's book with perfect rhymes. I can definitely see this being a series. It was fun to see Nessie and Mitten interact. The illustrations are lovely and work great here. I only wish we got a few more filler pages!

City Kitties is a rhyming picture book with charming images about a seasoned cat and a young kitten. The older cat is sharing tales of her adventures with the younger cat, who can't believe any one cat has had so many adventures.

Thanks to Netgalley and Ness House Press for a free digital copy.

A humorous rhyming tale of two kitties. One wise in the ways of the world, and one a kitten trying to figure it out. The wise kitty has lived many lives spanning generations and tells the younger kitten of every adventure. And it's a lesson in what you can do in your dreams.

Cute but ended a little abruptly for my taste.

City Kitties is about a well-traveled cat reminiscing on its adventures with a younger kitten. I loved the writing and the rhyme scheme in this - it made the story flow very well. The illustrations were lovely, too!

Princess Fuzzypants here: If I had a little one for whom I wanted to buy a present, I know which book I would choose. This is a delightful and sweet story about two kitties, one an experienced Siamese named Nessie and the other a prankish black kitten.named Mittens. Mittens tries to catch Nessie off guard but every time the older cat evades whatever trick Mittens is attempting.

Finally Mittens asks Nessie why this is so and is told that Nessie has seen it all. Now Mittens is curious and what follows is the tales of her various adventures through the ages from Egypt to France to Britain, hobnobbing with many famous characters. It is done in simple rhymes that could be read by an adult or by a child. Nessie teaches Mittens to use each of her nine lives to the utmost and says if Mittens will stop trying to play tricks, she can come along for the next adventures since Nessie has only used seven of her lives.

The stories and the artwork are enchanting. Fine thing that the book will come out in December. It is purrfect for gift giving. Five purrs and two paws up.