Santa Claws: A Christmas Tail for Cats
Denise Alicea
Geek Girl Publishing (2024)
ISBN: 979-8988349648
Reviewed by Diana Coyle for Reader Views (12/2024)
Apollo, the black rescue cat, doesn’t know what a forever home is. He found himself in a shelter for a bit of time, and during his stay there, he didn’t know love or what it meant to be shown affection. Such is the story of “Santa Claws: A Christmas Tail for Cats” by Denise Alicea. Eventually, Apollo met a person who spent a long time getting to know him while she visited. She fell in love with Apollo and decided to adopt him. She brought him home and made sure he had a nice comfortable bed, toys, and food. They spent lots of time together and Apollo was starting to understand what having a forever home was really like.
Then one night, Apollo couldn’t believe he heard a man’s voice coming down the chimney. Soon, he met a man dressed in a red outfit going by the name of Santa Claus. Apollo never heard of Santa Claus, but he seemed like a really nice man that he wanted to get to know. Santa explained who he was and what his job was of supplying toys to all the good boys and girls around the world. Apollo was very intrigued and even asked Santa if there was one just for cats. That’s when Santa came up with a great idea. What was the idea Santa came up with? Did Apollo like the new idea?
This is one special Christmas story that children will love reading, not only at Christmastime, but any time of year. Denise Alicea has penned a wonderful story wrapped around Apollo, the cat who didn’t know what a forever home even was, until he met his humans, and they took him home and spoiled him in every way. He knew he was a lucky cat and was very grateful for everything he was given. Children will learn to be thankful for all the good things given to you. Appreciate what is offered to you and show your gratitude to those who do nice gestures to you.
The author did a wonderful job telling Apollo’s story and coming up with the great idea that Santa thought of. I feel this will teach children to think outside the box and be creative with your ideas. Just as Santa was creative in coming up with something special for Apollo, children can also come up with special ideas on how to show gratefulness toward the people in their lives.
The illustrations that were provided on every page by Sadiqa Akhter were so beautiful to look at. They were crisp and vibrant in color and matched perfectly to the written words of this story. The pictures immediately draw the reader into the story, and you can’t help but stop to admire the way the artist did the illustrations. Children and adults will enjoy the pictures just as much as reading the story.
A fun tidbit to share is that this story is based on a true cat named Apollo, who was looking for his forever home and eventually found it. Who doesn’t love reading a story based on a real life cat!
“Santa Claws: A Christmas Tail for Cats” by Denise Alicea is one that readers will enjoy any time of year. The story is fun to read, the illustrations are gorgeous, and you walk away feeling a little warm and fuzzy feeling when you finish reading it. It is highly recommended! Well done, Ms. Alicea!