How to Give Your Cat a Bath

in Five Easy Steps

Illustrated by John Martz
Look inside
Hardcover
$18.99 US
On sale Jan 22, 2019 | 40 Pages | 9780735263543
In this hilarious and clever "how-to," a little girl and a know-it-all narrator are thwarted by a cat who refuses to take a bath. The perfect read-aloud for fans of Snappsy the Alligator and Interrupting Chicken.

Step one: fill the bath
Step two: put the cat in the bath
Step three: put shampoo on the cat
Step four: rinse the cat
Step five: dry the cat

Seems simple, right? One problem: the cat has no intention of doing ANY of these things! Watch as the steps keep changing, the cat keeps escaping, the girl keeps eating cookies and the mess keeps escalating. Soon it's not just the cat who needs a bath--it's the whole house!

This spoof on an instruction manual features an increasingly bewildered human, a nonchalant cat and a know-it-all narrator . . . who really doesn't know it all. How DO you give a cat a bath? Read on to find out!
  • NOMINEE | 2023
    North Carolina Children's Book Award
  • NOMINEE | 2021
    The Joan Betty Stuchner - Oy Vey! - Funniest Children's Book Award
  • NOMINEE | 2020
    Illinois State Library Monarch Award
  • FINALIST | 2020
    Shining Willow Award
  • SHORTLIST | 2020
    Hamilton Literary Award
  • FINALIST | 2019
    Governor General's Literary Awards - Children's Literature - Illustration
NICOLA WINSTANLEY has always believed in the power of stories to bring comfort. She is the author of The Pirate's Bed, A Bedtime Yarn, Cinnamon Baby, which won an honor prize for the Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award and was shortlisted for the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, How to Teach Your Cat a Trick and How to Give Your Cat a Bath, which was a finalist for the Govenor General's Literary Award. Nicola lives in Hamilton, Ontario, with her family, a huge cat, and a tiny dog. View titles by Nicola Winstanley
JOHN MARTZ is an illustrator, cartoonist and designer. He is the author and illustrator of Evie and the Truth About Witches, Burt’s Way Home, A Cat Named Tim and Other Stories and the illustrator of Who’s on First? and Crocodile Hungry. His work has also appeared in MAD Magazine and The Nib. He lives in Toronto. View titles by John Martz

About

In this hilarious and clever "how-to," a little girl and a know-it-all narrator are thwarted by a cat who refuses to take a bath. The perfect read-aloud for fans of Snappsy the Alligator and Interrupting Chicken.

Step one: fill the bath
Step two: put the cat in the bath
Step three: put shampoo on the cat
Step four: rinse the cat
Step five: dry the cat

Seems simple, right? One problem: the cat has no intention of doing ANY of these things! Watch as the steps keep changing, the cat keeps escaping, the girl keeps eating cookies and the mess keeps escalating. Soon it's not just the cat who needs a bath--it's the whole house!

This spoof on an instruction manual features an increasingly bewildered human, a nonchalant cat and a know-it-all narrator . . . who really doesn't know it all. How DO you give a cat a bath? Read on to find out!

Awards

  • NOMINEE | 2023
    North Carolina Children's Book Award
  • NOMINEE | 2021
    The Joan Betty Stuchner - Oy Vey! - Funniest Children's Book Award
  • NOMINEE | 2020
    Illinois State Library Monarch Award
  • FINALIST | 2020
    Shining Willow Award
  • SHORTLIST | 2020
    Hamilton Literary Award
  • FINALIST | 2019
    Governor General's Literary Awards - Children's Literature - Illustration

Author

NICOLA WINSTANLEY has always believed in the power of stories to bring comfort. She is the author of The Pirate's Bed, A Bedtime Yarn, Cinnamon Baby, which won an honor prize for the Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award and was shortlisted for the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award, How to Teach Your Cat a Trick and How to Give Your Cat a Bath, which was a finalist for the Govenor General's Literary Award. Nicola lives in Hamilton, Ontario, with her family, a huge cat, and a tiny dog. View titles by Nicola Winstanley
JOHN MARTZ is an illustrator, cartoonist and designer. He is the author and illustrator of Evie and the Truth About Witches, Burt’s Way Home, A Cat Named Tim and Other Stories and the illustrator of Who’s on First? and Crocodile Hungry. His work has also appeared in MAD Magazine and The Nib. He lives in Toronto. View titles by John Martz