Mango (the Long haired ginger cat) Gets a Foster Sister

Celebrating the healing power of unconditional love

Children - Social Issues
56 Pages
Reviewed on 10/02/2022
Buy on Amazon

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    Book Review

Reviewed by Joe Wisinski for Readers' Favorite

Mango (the Long-Haired Ginger Cat) Gets a Foster Sister: Celebrating the Healing Power of Unconditional Love is a story about anthropomorphic cats. Kathy Barnett Blomquist, who calls herself “Grandma Krazy,” dedicated her book to foster children and their families. The feline protagonist, Mango, gets a foster sister named Molly, who upsets Mango’s life. Molly’s actions include being unkind to Mango, insulting her, and getting her into trouble. But in return Mango treats Molly with kindness and love and Molly begins to change as she experiences the love of the family and acceptance by Mango. The story ends with two cats knowing that they will always be sisters. Every alternate page of the book is illustrated by Lauren Garcia.

I enjoyed reading Mango (the Long-Haired Ginger Cat) Gets a Foster Sister. The story teaches young children about love and acceptance using humanlike cats. The book also teaches the inevitable fact that people, as personified by the cats, will disagree and commit inappropriate acts. Yet it goes on to show that even when people treat us badly we can show compassion in return, and that’s a good lesson for children. Kathy Barnett Blomquist doesn’t say what age group her target audience is, but the book appears to be aimed at those who are just learning to read or have not yet learned to and would have the book read to them. The illustrations by Lauren Garcia are beautiful and fit the text perfectly. I recommend this book to young children, their parents, and their grandparents.

Vernita Naylor

Mango (The Long Haired Ginger Cat) Gets a Foster Sister by Grandma Krazy with illustrations by Lauren Garcia is about fear, rejection, kindness, and acceptance. When Mango, the cat, heard that she would have a new sister cat added to the family she was excited. She hoped her sister would like her and feel at home. What Mango didn't realize is that Molly, the new cat, had fear and apprehension about whether she would be accepted and adopted into her new family. Molly had experienced rejection from her mother and previous family and believed that the new family would do the same thing. Little did Molly realize that Mango's mother had instilled in her character the substance that would be essential in winning Molly over.

Mango (The Long Haired Ginger Cat) Gets a Foster Sister by Grandma Krazy is ideal for parents, guardians, or children to help them fully understand that those adopted need empathy especially if they're from unstable environments. The emotions from their past can greatly impact their lives and those around them, which is why this book is a jewel for exposing how the adopted may be feeling. Whether a child or animal is adopted, meeting their mental, physical, and emotional needs is essential to overall health and well-being. As the caretakers, parents, or guardians, a foundation must be in place to make these things happen and to create balance. Get your copy today and let it encourage you especially if you're considering adopting or are an adopted parent to a pet or child. Highly recommended.

Vincent Dublado

Grandma Krazy and Lauren Garcia’s storybook title clearly sums up what this heartwarming tale is all about: Mango Gets a Foster Sister: Celebrating the Healing Power of Unconditional Love. The long-haired ginger cat named Mango is excited because she is getting a foster sister. Her name is Molly, and she is the same age as Mango. Upon arriving at the house, Molly is scared and quiet, as she tries to settle into the rhythms of her new home. Mango tries her best to make Molly feel welcome and at home. They discover that they like a lot of the same things. Everything is turning out well when things suddenly change: Molly starts to display unusual behavior that makes her unbecoming. This is going to test Mango on how far she is willing to go to let Molly know that she will still be loved even if she does bad things.

Grandma Krazy and Lauren Garcia dedicate this story to the approximately 400,000 kids in the United States Foster Care System and the foster families who nurture and care for them during their traumatic situations. They manage to turn a simple premise about unconditional love into a short tale that effectively summarizes and sends a clear message to parents and kids that, just like respect, trust is earned and not something that you should demand from others. The feline illustrations are vivid and they have faces that are alive with emotional expressions. There is an element of anthropomorphism in their movements, but their cat physiology remains perfectly captured. As far as values are concerned, this little book teaches so much without being too preachy—because it shows rather than tells. Mango Gets a Foster Sister is highly recommended for school reading activities and bedtime stories.