This is a presentation that has compiled books and media related to cats in folk and fairy tales. The resources are meant to assist librarians or teachers in creating programming for story time during June. June is Adopt-a-Cat month.

1. Cats in Folk and Fairy
Tales
Program Ideas for
Adopt-A-Cat Month
in June
Compiled by Elizabeth Miller

2. “… This animal wavers on the borderland between the
natural and the supernatural…” – Carl Van Vechten
June is Adopt-A- Cat for the American Humane Society.
During this month libraries also have an opportunity to
create programing that incorporates materials that
feature this wonderful animal.
Folk and fairy tales feature cats in all their mystery. This
presentation explores only a few of the many resources
available to librarians.
Mortimer, Anne. Catopia: A Cat Compendium. HarperCollins Publishers, 2007

3. The Lion and The Mouse
The cat is a lion in a jungle of small bushes.
Native American Proverb
Try pairing Aesop’s Fable of The Lion and The Mouse available online from
Gutenberg.com and Jerry Pinkney’s (2009) The Lion & The Mouse.
Image Source for Slide: By Kevin Pluck (Flickr: The King.) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via Wikimedia Commons
Quote sourced from: Mortimer, Anne. Catopia: A Cat Compendium. HarperCollins Publishers, 2007
Jerry Pinkney’s work is a word-
less picture book retelling the folk
tale of the lion and the mouse.
This book is perfect for storytime
and paring it with Aesop’s tale
can help some younger children
relate to the tale.
Aesop’s fables feature big cats in
many of the tales. Using these for
storytime coupled with a craft
project would engage young
readers. This story captures a story
of kindness and friendship between
a mouse and lion.

4. Puss in Boots
To assume a cat’s asleep is a grave mistake. He can close his eyes and keep both his ears awake - Aileen Fisher
Image Source: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/29021/29021-h/29021-h.htm#The_Master_Cat_or_Puss_in_Boots
Quote sourced from: Mortimer, Anne. Catopia: A Cat Compendium. HarperCollins Publishers, 2007
Charles Perrault
captured the folktale
of Puss in Boots and
there have been many
retellings. This would
be another folktale to
include in a storytime
program in June. This
story is about a
resourceful cat who
uses all his cunning to
help his master.

5. A Fractured Folktale
Puss in Boots by
DreamWorks Animation
could be paired with a
storytime featuring
Charles Perrault's telling
of Puss in Boots.
While this movie serves
as a prequel to Shrek 2, it
could be another way to
introduce readers to
fractured folk and fairy
tales, which use familiar
characters and themes.
After this slide a brief preview will play of this
movie’s trailer.

6. The King of Cats
King o’ the Cats is a retelling
of a British folktale. Peter Black
is a young man who notices
that the cats in his town are
acting very suspicious. Arron
Sheppard offers a free version
of this text on his website:
http://www.aaronshep.com/st
ories/folk.html
Image source for slide: By Creator/Contributor: Dielman, F. (Frederick), 1847-1935 (artist); L. Prang & Co. (publisher) (Flickr: The Widow) [Public domain], via Wikimedia
Commons. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AThe_Widow_(Boston_Public_Library).jpg

7. Cats in Creation
Oloyou is a retelling of a
Yoruba folktale from Cuba.
This book is bilingual with
English and Spanish text often
side by side. It looks at the
creation of a white cat, the
only friend of the God-child
that created her. Margarita
Sada’s wonderful illustrations
show the trials of this special
friendship.

8. The Lucky Cat: Maneki Neko
There are many Japanese
folktales that tell how the
lucky cat came to be. Wendy
Henrichs’ retelling of this
story, in I am Tama, Lucky
Cat, tells how a monk’s
kindness earned him the
gratitude and blessings of a
lucky cat. In Koko Mishizuka’s
retelling in The Beckoning Cat
a poor shopkeepers kindness
toward the lucky cat gains
him wealth to care for his
family and shop.
Cats are love on four legs – Richard Torregrossa
Quote sourced from: Mortimer, Anne. Catopia: A Cat Compendium. HarperCollins Publishers, 2007

9. Another Cat Bringing Good Luck
This is a Palestinian tale about
Sitti, a grandmother in the
village, rescues a kitten and
earns gifts from the cat
kingdom. Like the story of the
Maneki Neko, kindness
towards someone in need is
rewarded.

10. Kittens, Kittens, and More Kittens
There is no more intrepid explorer than a kitten – Jules Champfleury
There are a variety of
retellings of the nursery
rhyme of the three kittens
who lost their mittens. Jerry
Pinkney’s illustrations make
these cuddly kittens tumble
of the books pages.
Paul Galdone’s bright
illustrations capture the
readers attention. Both are
great additions to story time
Image source for slide: By Pieter Lanser from The Netherlands (IMG_9051 Uploaded by oxyman) [CC BY 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0)], via
Wikimedia Commons. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3A4_Kittens.jpg

11. This Danish folktale tells the
story of a very hungry cat that
eats all of his friend’s food and
his best friend the mouse.
Mouse has to cut herself out
of the cat, but stays to help the
cat heal since they are friends.
A Hungry Cat
A cat’s communicating ability is probably at its highest level of activity
around mealtime. – Jack Richter
Quote sourced from: Mortimer, Anne. Catopia: A Cat Compendium. HarperCollins Publishers, 2007

12. The White Cat:
A French Tale of Enchantment
The White Cat is a fairy tale
about a princess enchanted
by fairies and turned into a
cat. The prince is able to
break the curse and the white
cat becomes a princess again.
This story was originally
written down by Marie
Catherine D’Aulnoy
Image Sorce: Wikiart. The White Cat, Pierre Bonnard, 1894, oil on canvas, held by Musee
d'Orsay, Paris, France. http://www.wikiart.org/en/pierre-bonnard/the-white-cat-1894

13. A Collection of Cat Myths
Cats of Myth: Tales from Around the
World compiled by Gerald and Loretta
Hausman is a collection of mythologies
that includes tales of cats from many
different cultures.
These stories could be used at story time
or for another program at a library in
June.
From Norse Mythology the Goddess Freya’s
Chariot is drawn by a pair of cats
Image Source: By Ludwig Pietsch (1824-1911) [Public domain or Public
domain], via Wikimedia Commons
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3AFreyja_riding_with_her_cats_(18
74).jpg

14. The Cheshire Cat
I wish I cold write as mysterious as a cat- Edgar Allan Poe
The Cheshire cat is one of the
most memorable of the literary
cats. He appears in wonderful
detail in Lewis Carroll’s work Alice
in Wonderland.
Using images and excerpts to
create a display for Adopt-a-Cat
month in June will draw in
patrons of all ages.
Image Source for Slide: John Tenniel [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACheshire_Cat_appearing_(detail).jpg

15. Cat Sock Puppets:
Art & Craft Activity for Kids
There are many different art
and craft activity ideas that
can be incorporated in library
programing and story time.
Sock puppets are one way to
engage children in story time.
I have included a brief video
on how to create a sock
puppet cat. This activity can
be changed to meet individual
program needs.
After this slide an instructional
video will play showing you one
way to create a cat sock puppet.
Image source for sock puppet: By Durova (Own work) [GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html) or CC BY-SA 4.0-3.0-2.5-
2.0-1.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0-3.0-2.5-2.0-1.0)], via Wikimedia Commons.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ASockcat.jpg

16. Image source for slide: By Peter Forster [CC BY-SA 2.0 (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0)], via Wikimedia
Commons. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File%3ACat_Briciola_with_pretty_and_different_colour_of_eyes.jpg
There are many more folk
and fairy tales that include
cats than the books listed
here.
There stories are just
some that could be
included in story times
and programming for
Adopt-a-Cat month in
June for your library or
class room.
Final Thoughts
..DesktopAnnotated Resources for Cats in Folk
and Fairy Tales.pdf
Below is a link to a printable PDF of a list of
annotated resources discussed in this
presentation:

17. Resources
Aesop. (2006). The Aesop for children with pictures by Milo Winter. (pp. 24). Retrieved from
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19994/19994-h/19994-h.htm#Page_23.
Bahous Allen, S. (1997). Sitti and the Cats. (N. Malick, Illustrator). Boulder, CO: Roberts Rinehart Publisher.
Cardenas, T. (2008). Oloyou. (E. Amado, Trans.). (M. Sada, Illustrator). Berkley, CA: Publishers Group West.
Carrol, L. (2014) Alice’s adventures in wonderland. (J. Tenniel, Illustrator). Kindle edition. Retrieved from www.amazon.com.
Galdone, P. (2011). Three little kittens: a folk tale classic. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin, Harcourt.
Hausman, L. (2000). Cats of Myth. (L. Baker, Illustrator). New York: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.
Henrichs, W. (2011). I am Tama, lucky cat. (Y. Jaeggi, Illustrator). Alanta, GA: Peachtree.
McDonald, M. R. (2001). Fat cat: a Danish folktale. (J. Paschkis, Illustrator). Little Rock: August House.
Mortimer, A. (2007). Catopia: A Cat Compendium. New York: HarperCollins Publishers.
Nikolajeva, M. (2009). Devils, Demons, Familars, Friends: Toward a Semiotics of Literary Cats. Marvel’s & Tales: Journa of Fairy-
Tale Studies. 23(2), 248-267.
Nishizuka, K. (2009). The beckoning cat. (R. Litzinger, Illustrator). New York: Holiday House.

18. Resources
Perrault, C. (1990) Puss in boots. (M. Arthur, Trans.). (F. Marcellino, Illustrator). New York: Farra, Straus and Giroux.
Perrault, C. (2009). The Fairy Tales of Charles Perrault. Retrieved from www.gutenberg.org/files/29021/29021-
h/29021-h.htm.
Pinkney, J. (2012). Puss in boots. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.
Pinkney, J. (2009). The lion & the mouse. New York: Little, Brown and Company.
Pinkney, J. (2010). Three little kittens. New York: Dial Books for Young Readers.
Puss in Boots [Motion picture on DVD]. (2011). Dreamworks.
San Souci, R.D. (1990). The White Cat: an old French fairy tale. (G. Spirin, Illustrator). New York: Orchard Books.
Shepard, A. (2010). King o’ the Cats. (K. Sorra, Illustrator). New York: Antheneum Books for Young Readers.
Zipes, J. (1989). Beauties, beasts, and enchantment: classic French fairy tales. New York: New American Library.
Please note all images of book covers sourced from www.barnesandnoble.com and www.amazon.com.