A Grumpy Book written by Grumpy Cat

First, before I begin the review let me just state the obvious: I read a book written by a cat (not literally but he is credited as the author so go with me on this, he wrote it). Secondly, again, before I begin the review: a cat has a published book that was a best seller before I even graduated college (*sigh*)

And now for the review~

If you like books that are funny, easy to read and have more illustrations than words (I mean, come on, those are the best), this is the book for you. “A Grumpy Book” is a cross between a humorous read and a self-help book—it doesn’t look like it but bear with me while I load down all the things this book did for me while I read it.

One of the easiest books I have read in a very long time, this book contains illustrations and pictures from everyone’s favorite grumpy cat. The book is basically a how-to be grumpy and it has definitive techniques that make this grumpy cat a successful grump. It also contains activities that continue to play on the fact that the author is a grumpy cat that wishes to spread grumpiness everywhere. 

Unlike other books that I have read, this book does not have a clear “story” but rather is a manual to being grumpy and ‘miserable’—there is a page in the book that I loved that the grumpy cat lets us in on what books he actually likes and one of those books is “Les Miserables.” 

The book is not filled with any difficult language and is a pretty easy and short read. While reading this book, it was actually quite funny with all the negativity that the cat was giving off, it made me actually happy and I laughed as I flipped the pages. This goes back to what I said before, that this book was a humorous self-help book. I would use this book as a way to show middle school children that being angry all the time is not only tiresome but also unnecessary. 

By the time I finished the book, I wanted to read it again only because I knew that I was going to be able to laugh all over again. 

Pros: Fun read. I loved that it had illustrations and funny images. I never thought I would enjoy a book written by a cat. 

Cons: I could not come up with a way to incorporate into the classroom other than having it for a reading day. I had the idea of using it for a bullying or writing mechanics lesson but I couldn’t properly put it into words (help?) 

Why read a book if you don't know the author. Here is a link to the most reliable site in the world: 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grumpy_Cat

If you want to get the book, here is the link: http://www.amazon.com/Grumpy-Cat-A-Book/dp/1452126577

Here is a great video that talks about the book and its author (its comedic, going along with the tone of the book):

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2463731/Grumpy-Cat-launches-book-probably-dislikes-it.html

I think that this book uses reverse psychology, to some extent. Instead of saying "be happy," the book uses comedy that actually brightens up the reader's day by seeing how absurd all of the grumpy cat's complaints and tips on how to be grumpy are. Here is a link that discusses what reverse psychology is and how it work: 

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-science-influence/201104/do-you-use-reverse-psychology-stop-right-now

Here is a link that I found that shows the benefits of comedy:

http://www.chrisdunmire.com/articles/humor.depression.shtml