A review by chrislatray
The White Cat and the Monk: A Retelling of the Poem “Pangur Bán” by Jo Ellen Bogart

5.0

I love this book. Based on an ancient poem, this story—the artwork, the poem, everything—is like a dagger to the heart, a blow that pierces to the core of all my pent-up longings. Strange, for a children’s book. It is just a reminder that for many of us, even when life seems to be going well, sorrow and all its desire to just hole up for the duration is a razor’s edge away. I’d like to end my days like the monk in this story—alone, but with one stalwart, true friend and companion—not rotting in a car at the far end of some abandoned road as I often expect to.