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Reviewed by Jamie Michele for Readers' Favorite
In Robin Carole’s A Christmas Miracle with a Dash of Cumin, Panera is a black-and-white tuxedo cat whose story begins when a family shelters her pregnant stray mother. Panera enters the world three days after Christmas, then spends her earliest weeks in foster arrangements until she is old enough for adoption. Her new mother brings her into a loving household, where Panera soon settles into family life and develops familiar routines such as greeting everyone in the laundry room whenever the garage door opens. During the following Christmas season, a thunderstorm startles Panera during one of her climbs above the fireplace. Her family finds her hiding beneath a bed with an unexplained injury, turning an ordinary holiday week into a frightening search for medical help as they try to understand what has happened to their beloved cat.
Robin Carole’s A Christmas Miracle with a Dash of Cumin is a lovely little story, with Panera’s first-person voice bringing a playful sweetness to every feline observation. The writing has an easy comic touch, especially when Cedar greets his new housemate by acting as though he is the only cool cat in the family. As a family who had some difficulty introducing a new furry family member to our existing one, this had me in stitches. Aimee Croteau’s colored pencil illustrations are wonderful, giving Panera’s tuxedo markings a soft, expressive look that fits the gentle tone perfectly. One of my favorite pictures comes during a difficult night, when Panera’s mother curls beside her on the cramped guest bathroom floor, turning a small domestic moment into something genuinely tender. The pictures complement the writing beautifully, keeping Panera unmistakably herself in every scene. Wonderfully written and heartfelt, cat lovers who enjoy gentle Christmas stories will adore this.
