In 525 BCE, Persia waged war against Egypt, using cats on the battlefield to allow them to overcome their enemy. This is the story of how that happened, and why.

Told in an easy, conversational tone (think podcast-speak), with clear illustrations, this is a fascinating little book about a real event I had no idea about. It is a short book, for younger readers, but the back of the book includes a section on sorting myth from truth, and a list of the author's sources for further reading

I downloaded this for my cat-loving, Egypt-obsessed kiddo, who voted it 5 stars.

~Many thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review~

Thank you Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book. These opinions are completely my own.

I enjoyed the tone of the story, it's fun and grabs the readers attention. My favorite part of the book is the Mystery vs History page, interesting to read

Wow, what a gorgeous book! Immediately the illustrations made me interested to read it.

I love learning about history, but often big non-fiction books are too much information at once. That's why when I saw this I was immediately curious. Books for younger ages are often more clear and a fun way to learn, and that is exactly what happened!

This book tells the story of a war between Ancient Egypt and Persia. I don't know about education in other countries, but here in The Netherlands I never learned about this in school.

I really enjoyed this as an adult (well, as adult I can be at 20) and I can only imagine how fun this book would be for children. It is beautifully illustrated, the cat puns made me laugh, and the explanation is clear and easy to read. I definitely would recommend to kids (and adults!) who enjoy history or cats. I'm sure they would enjoy this book as well. I have absolutely nothing negative to say.

Thank you Netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC! This book will be published on October 1st, 2024.

This is a super cute history book. I was intrigued by the mention of cats and ended up learning something new. I would recommend the series for elementary grades as it is funny but factual as well.

This was a really interesting book with some great illustrations - I love this kind of book as a parent - the children are learning as well as getting a true story from history or hiss-tory told to them - win, win.

When I was young I was fascinated by Ancient Egypt and the Pharaohs so I was delighted to find this book which is a mixture of facts and a good story and to use this to introduce more about them to my daughter - she thought that it was great and wants to learn more about it all now too

The glossary and the bibliography at the back of the book are great and encourages further and future learning. This is the third Head-to-Head History book so will certainly be looking to get the other books in the series too now.

It is 4.5 stars from me for this one, rounded up to 5 stars for Goodreads and Amazon - definitely one that is worth a read - very highly recommended!

My kids and I absolutely loved this book. They’re into cats, which is what initially drew us to the book. This is the way history should have been taught when I was in school because this book made the history so interesting. We learned so much and enjoyed it all along the way. This would be a great addition to any library. I can’t wait to read other books in this series of Head to Head History books.

Thank you NetGalley and Kids Can Press for the opportunity to read this book prior to publication.

All the cat ladies and the cat papas clap together for this book as we now know cats were released from their land to enchant us while we worship them!

Who they?!

Just read this book!

It’s funny has maybe or may not be facts, you choose!

The illustrations are fun and quite funny!

Need more of this series please!

Thank you, Kids Can Press, for the ARC.

“Pharaoh vs. the Felines” is the story of the Battle of Pelusium in which the Ancient Egyptians refused to fight cats. In just a few pages, author J.F. Fox and illustrator Anna Kwan explain how it came to be that the mighty Egyptian army refused to defend against a Persian invasion. The story explains how cats became revered in Ancient Egyptian culture and why a pharaoh’s decision to send an imposter princess to Persia led to war.

The story is simply told with modern language that is accessible to kids. As a history teacher I appreciated the detail in the back of the book that explains how historians pieced this story together using available documentation and context of the historical time. There is a glossary and sources list as well.

This is a purr-fect story for children who enjoy stories about cats or stories about historical events. This would also be a great book to have in your classroom if your students are going to write accessible histories or historical fiction.

I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley and Kids Can Press, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This was an entertaining book. I will use it with my social studies class to teach them about Egyptian ancient civilization. It explains why cats were important to their culture.

This book is so charming and entertaining! Written in such a compelling way, it tells this obscure historical tale (or tail) in a punny and engaging manner.

This is the third installment in a fun, lighthearted series that explores little-known historical events. The illustrations are full of interesting details, and the text is simple and punchy, with humorous asides and lots of great puns. This nonfiction picture book involves political intrigue, subterfuge, and a clever solution to defeating an army, and it will appeal to kids and adults who are interested in Egyptian history, cats, and quirky true tales.

The Pharaoh vs. the Felines would be a great book for teachers to read at the beginning of a lesson on Egyptian mythology or parents to read with their ancient Egypt loving children. Fox does a great job giving the background of the ancient Egyptians and the lengths to their fascination with cats.

A really fun, quick history lesson! The art style is very cute and easy to look at. This book will definitely be bought just to have a place on mu bookshelf.

Part three of a series giving us some of the lighter, quirkier aspects of history, we get instead here a whalloping tale of war, treachery and misdeed. When the Persian king thought he was on to a good thing with the hand of the Egyptian pharaoh's daughter in marriage, he was miffed and then some to find the lass was someone else just pretending to be royal. He was even more annoyed to find his new enemy dead before he could invade, but invade he did – and he had a trick up his sleeve. Well, not wholly up it – no doubt it might scratch if you left a cat there…

Very easy to read, this hits a lot of marks for junior history. But it is such a peculiar event the side of me that thinks this is too trivial is what I'm leaning towards. Also the very way we get the story presented to us, and how it's dressed up as cats v pharaohs, when that isn't really the headline fact here, makes me wonder if this was ideal. But for the fan of the unusual from our world's history, this might not be as quirky as my verdict suggests, and it might well find favour with the intended readership. Until I have proof of that, however, three and a half stars.

Lots of fun! I have enjoyed the other books in this series, and this is a great addition. I loved learning about Ancient Egypt and Persia, and I love cats!

My three cats think this book is a must read for everyone and I agree with that statement. A clever way to learn children some history. Love it! Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The ancient Egyptians worshipped and revered cats -- but hey, who doesn't?

This was such a fun and informative way to learn about a battle I'd never heard of! Between the silly puns and adorable illustrations, I was smiling the whole way through. A purr-fect way to introduce some Egyptian history in an engaging, entertaining way, especially for my fellow feline fanatics out there of all ages.

(Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free digital copy in exchange for an honest review.)

This was such a fun, educational book! This was such an interesting event and I had never heard of it before this book. I also liked the recap at the end.

I loved the illustrations, I think they worked perfectly in the story.

I can’t wait to read the rest of the series!

Princess Fuzzypants here: We kitties were worshipped as gods by the Egyptians. We have never forgotten that. They were very protective of us and we were coddled and honoured- as it should be. But once in antiquity their devotion to us was turned against them. This is a true story from history although the actual facts might have been fudged over the millennia. But the Persians did conquer the Egyptians by using us as weapons.
Sounds very grim, doesn’t it.
This children’s book is written in a cheeky way with some adorable pictures so it is a way to tell the story in a highly entertaining manner. The fact that the main kitty is a ginger, just like me, has nothing to do with my rating. I give it five purrs and two paws up!

Wildly fun and purr-fect book! Even though this was a history book, the author made it so, so fun to read and I was entertained the entire time while reading this book. This was due to the witty way the author's writing style was, and the way the writing interacted with the cute drawings. Because of all of this greatness, kids will walk away from this book with information that sticks due to how memorable this book can be. On top of that, young readers everywhere will be smiling and giggling out loud at the whimsical drawings and hilariously clever storytelling. Lastly, the story gave the reader a lot of information, but it was also a smart idea to include more straightforward facts at the end of the book, so that readers can dig deeper into this topic.
Bravo!