ACHUKA Book of the Day

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“Utterly beautiful, playfully fun, and, above all, breathtaking.” KIRKUS

Our Russian blue/Siamese mix, Dylan, disappeared one day, and we couldn’t find him anywhere in the house. A few hours later, he reappeared, unruffled, but his whiskers were full of spiderwebs. We wondered where he had gone and surmised that he had found a wormhole in space and time—maybe he’d gone back to ancient Egypt, where cats were revered, and had adventures there! That idea morphed into a wider story about Kitten journeying through works of art from different times and cultures.
Brian Lies, talking to KIRKUS

With lush paintings and intricately constructed 3-D artwork, bestselling and Caldecott Honor–winning author-illustrator Brian Lies introduces a sleepy kitten whose afternoon nap transforms into an epic journey through art, time, and history. Includes a note from the author about how the illustrations were created.

In the warm, late afternoon sunlight, a girl sits on the couch reading a book. Her kitten dozes nearby. But when Kitten notices a mouse and dives after it through a framed poster on the wall, an epic chase through time, art, and history ensues. Is it a dream? That’s up to the reader to decide, but for the kitten, every leap and bound is full of suspense and makes for a masterpiece.

Caldecott Honor–winning andNew York Times bestsellingauthor-illustrator Brian Lies creates a truly unique picture book journey that invites young readers through the galleries of an art museum as well as through time, space, and history. As the cat and mouse leap from one page to the next, they are portrayed in the style of masterful artworks from history—an ancient Egyptian relief, an illuminated manuscript, a stained-glass window, a ceramic dog—each painstakingly and lovingly re-created in its original media by Brian Lies. When the sly mouse gets away, Kitten finds himself lost and alone. Will art help him find his way home?

This visual showstopper by an award-winning and bestselling picture book creator offers readers a page-turning cat and mouse chase, an introduction to famous works of art throughout history, an epic adventure story, and a homecoming. Backmatter includes information about how each of the illustrations in the book was created, notes on the original artworks featured in the book, and an afterword inviting young readers to make, create, and build things.

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Calling all feline fans! Brian Lies discusses CAT NAP, named one of the 😻 #BestPictureBooks2025! 😻 https://t.co/ZtqA6FKqY2 @HarperChildrens pic.twitter.com/68FlCC8K5s

— Kirkus Reviews (@KirkusReviews) November 26, 2025

"Each illustration [of CAT NAP} is a marvel, based on a real work of art, and is made even more so by reading Brian Lies’ description of his painstaking recreations of each one. I loved how he celebrates making art with your own hands [vs.] digitally or with" AI. https://t.co/PgVNTsv4J5

— Jeanne Walker Harvey 📚 (@JeanneWHarvey) November 23, 2025

Cat Nap, by Brian Lies, is a brilliant picture book romp of a kitten chasing a mouse through works of art – and taking on the appearance of the art in the process.

Read my review:https://t.co/6vDiNuo5hz pic.twitter.com/8uBVVQrra9

— Sondra Eklund (@Sonderbooks) October 10, 2025