A promising STEM book about cats and robots totally derailed by half-baked political ideology. ( )

Cats vs. Robots -- This Is War is a delightful and entertaining read. It's the first book in a new children's book series by Margaret Stohl and Lewis Peterson.

The story centers around two galactic empires that consist of seemingly polar opposites -- the Robots, or "Binars," obsessed with order and rules, and the Cats, for whom rules are "generally meant to be followed--but only if you felt like it."

These civilizations' epic battle is now coming to Earth, where humans have invented a "Singularity Chip" that can enable cats to live past their nine lives or grant robots eternal battery life. Each side is determined that the chip must not fall into the enemy's paws -- or grasping appendages.

As the winner of a #GoodreadsGiveaway, I received an advanced reader's copy of this thoroughly engaging book. From start to finish, I found so much to enjoy and appreciate.

To begin with, the book encourages readers to move beyond "binary" thinking, of believing that something has to be all of one thing or all of something else. Girl or Boy. Cat or Robot. Organized or Chaotic. However you delineate things that you believe to be complete opposites.

In earlier comments, I mentioned the book incorporating Sciences, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics -- abbreviated in education communities as STEM (or, as I prefer it, STEAM, which also encompasses Arts). Well, robotics, coding, computer programming, are all integral to this story.

But one other area where I feel that readers may benefit is in emotional literacy ... to an ability to identify your feelings. Two human twins, Min and Max, experience a range of emotions as they interact with two mischievous kittens and an older cat whose health is failing.

My thanks to everyone involved in this book's creation for the chance to read this advance copy. This book would be a great addition to the children's collection in a library.

-- Cynthia M. Parkhill, June 26, 2018

********

Learned this morning in an email that I'd won a #GoodreadsGiveaway of 's Cats vs. Robots. My initial impression of this book, when I enrolled in the giveaway, was that it combined my favorite animal, the cat, with an application of STEAM principles (That's Sciences, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics. As I understand it, educators incorporate STEAM in education to prepare children to live and work in an increasingly technological society.) Well, my intention with any children's book giveaway that I won was to place the book, once I'd read it, into my school library. And for its emphasis on STEAM, plus seeming a really fun read, I thought this book would be an especially good fit. I'm looking forward to receiving this book and, most especially, to reading it.

-- Cynthia M. Parkhill, June 9, 2018 ( )