Product Description

In Greenwich Village, an orphaned black cat — the beguiling Jenny Linsky — lives happily with her sea-captain master. Jenny longs to join the local Cat Club, whose members include Madame Butterfly, the fancy dancer Macaroni, and stately, plump Mr. President. But can she prove that she, too, has a special gift? Join Jenny and her friends, including fearless Pickles the Fire Cat, mascot of Hook and Ladder Company 7X, on their spirited and sweet downtown adventures and discover the wonderful world of this special feline and her friends.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #38103 in Books
• Published on: 2003-11-30
• Released on: 2003-11-30
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 176 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781590170472
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

Review
"Esther Averill's collection of Jenny Linsky books deserves special mention. ...Told in clear, simple language that will appeal to younger children, all of these stories are delightful and festooned with simple illustrations every few pages that enhance, but never dominate, the melodious text." --The San Francisco Chronicle

From the Inside Flap
"Jenny Linsky, the gallant heroine of these perenially endearing tales, pads through life balancing many of the same emotional ups and downs that crowd every schoolchild’s day. Being a cat, Jenny does it all with enviable aplomb, and with a keen eye for her surroundings--the colorful back alleys and gardens of Greenwich Village. In Jenny readers meet the perfect friend--an honest, fun-loving, and loyal playfellow and comrade-in-arms. How good to have Jenny back in print--and the august Cat Club back in session again!" --Leonard S. Marcus, author of Storied City: A Children’s Book Walking Tour Guide to New York City

About the Author
Esther Averill (1902–1992) began her career as a storyteller drawing cartoons for her local newspaper. After graduating from Vassar College in 1923, she moved first to New York City and then to Paris, where she founded her own publishing company. The Domino Press introduced American readers to artists from all over the world. In 1941, Esther Averill returned to the United States and found a job in the New York Public Library while continuing her work as a publisher. She wrote her first book about the red-scarfed, mild-mannered cat Jenny Linsky in 1944, modeling its heroine on her own shy cat. Esther Averill would eventually write twelve more tales about Miss Linsky and her friends including the I Can Read Book, The Fire Cat, each of which was eagerly awaited by children all over the United States (and their parents, too).

Customer Reviews

A favorite book as a kid, still good as an adult
I still have my worn out yellow paperback copy of this book with the picture of Jenny Linsky, the little black cat with the red scarf, on the cover. When a little black cat came and hid in my childhood backyard, I insisted on naming him (yes, him) Jenny. He wore a red collar, because my parents thought a scarf would drag on the ground and choke him.

I have been an ardent cat-lover as long as I can remember, and as a child I was fascinated by the stories of the Cat Club who gathered outside at night and had all kinds of adventures. Given that I was an intensely fact-driven kid, I admit to a little confusion about whether cats could actually act the way they did in the books, how Pickles would keep (or want to keep) his fire hat on, and how much of the book was real. The fact that it was based on real cats made this more confusing, and as a kid I didn't understand the idea of blending cat and human features to make an amusing but quite fantastical story. I don't remember any other kids having that particular problem with the book, though, so I'll chalk it up to my having been a weird kid.

I just pulled this book down off my bookshelf today, and after all these years it's still a book I enjoy. My favorite story is still "Jenny's Adopted Brothers", in which Jenny invites two stray cats home to stay with her. If I ever had children, I would definitely give them this book, and a number of adults would probably enjoy it as well. It could also be a good opportunity to teach the sort of kid I was about the possibilities of creatively blending fact and fiction when writing -- it was one of the few books I was willing to suspend disbelief for, because the stories were so interesting.

Jenny Linsky taught me to read.
There's a time most of us probably don't remember when we make the conceptual leap from looking at a bunch of letters on a page to reading. Jenny did this for me.

My grandmother sent me the first Jenny Linsky books before I was old enough to start school. My parents read them to me--at first. For the rest of his life my Dad said that he, too, adored Jenny Linsky because all he had to do was put me in his lap, open the book, and turn the pages. I did all the rest.

Years ago, before internet use was common, I asked a woman who owned a children's bookstore if she carried the Jenny Linksy books. She condecendingly told me that she never heard of them. No wonder that store went out of business.

Later, when I went online and tried to find the books, all I could find were rare collectors copies.

I'm thrilled to see these reprinted. I owe Jenny for a lifetime of happy reading.

We love the Cat Club!
Over a period of days, I read my 7 and 4 year old the stories in this lovely book. We all just loved them - the stories are such a refreshing change from more modern stories. They are old-fashioned, but still relevant and engaging to children. Jenny Linksy is charming, but has her faults. She admirably faces challenges and is willing to admit when she's wrong. My kids kept asking questions about the stories and making comments about Jenny and her friends for days after each reading. They totally looked forward to the next story. Echoing a prior reviewer's comment - Please publish the rest of the stories!