BirdCatDog

By Lee Nordling and Meritxell Bosch

Look out! A bird escapes from its cage and flies out the window. A napping cat wakes up hungry and tries to catch a snack. A dog stands guard in his backyard, ready to bark at anything that comes near. Follow the tales of three animals on one wild afternoon.

In this clever wordless comic, each animal is a hero in its own story and all three stories are connected. Lee Nordling's simple storytelling engages young readers and provides a gateway into understanding multiple perspectives and points of view.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lerner Publishing
• Release date: Aug 1, 2014
• ISBN: 9781467774734

Lee Nordling

Two-time Eisner nominee Lee Nordling is an award-winning writer, editor, and creative director who has worked on staff at Disney Publishing, DC Comics, and Nickelodeon Magazine. His book The Bramble won the 2013 Moonbeam Gold Medal for Picture Books (ages 4-8), and BirdCatDog, an Eisner Award nominee, was chosen by Kirkus Reviews as one of the best children's books of 2014, and won the Moonbeam Spirit Award for Imagination. The third book in his Three-Story Book series, SheHeWe, was a 2016 Eisner Award nominee. His current Game for Adventure series—beginning with Andrew the Seeker, and Belinda the Unbeatable, the latter garnering two starred reviews from Booklist and Kirkus—concludes in Spring 2018 with Chavo the Invisible. He lives in Sacramento, California with his wife, Cheri, and numerous pets that earn their kibble by offering inspiration.

Book preview

Reviews for BirdCatDog

[ash13276 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This book is very detailed in pictures due to no words being present on pages. I did enjoy looking at pictures and found myself being very engaged looking at the book. several pictures were being presented on each page. This book had a beginning, middle, and end for each animal. It was cool because on the top part of the page it told the bird story using pictures. In the middle, it shared the cats story using pictures. Lastly, at the bottom of each page it showed the dogs story using pictures.

[megantrue · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Super cute. Really good way to get a young kid interested in books. Definitely a good choice.

[sullywriter_1 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

One story from three different perspectives or three stories, each from a unique point of view.

[pussreboots · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

BirdCatDog by Lee Nordling is a mostly wordless (the only words being at the start and finish of the book) graphic novel about a bird, a cat, and a dog. Or rather, it's three parallel but interconnected, mostly wordless, graphic novels: one about a bird, one about a cat, and one about a dog.At the top of each page is the story of the bird, done in shades of sky blue. In the middle, is the story of the cat, done in shades of green. At the bottom is the story of the dog, done in oranges and reds.The bird's story is one of flight, beginning with the escape from the birdcage hanging near an open window. With freedom, though, comes responsibility and danger. The bird soon finds itself being chased from below by the cat and from above by a bird of prey. The bird then must weigh the exhilaration of freedom against the guaranteed survival of captivity.The cat, being a cat, can't help but go after the bird. In the process of being caught up in the thrill of the chase, it overlooks its own dangers (the dog for example). And like all cats, it knows how to lick its wounds nonchalantly when things don't turn out as expected.Finally there's the dog who wants nothing but to get out of the backyard. But once free, there's more to do (like chase the cat and bark at the dog). It too finds the woods to be far more than expected.As this short graphic novel progresses, more and more of the threads intertwine. There are other characters too who join in the fray. And at the end, the book asks the same question as the beginning: who is the hero of the story? Is it the bird? the cat? The dog? Or maybe one of the other characters introduced. As the book is so open ended, that answer is left up to the interpretation (and mood) of the reader.