I read a children's picture book that must have been published sometime in the mid to late '70s.
The book was about the size of a magazine, it had color illustrations and was about a young cat that went to sea. The cat stood upright and wore blue pants and a white shirt, along with some kind of a headband/kerchief.
The body of the book includes mild adventures, but the kindtraumatic part comes on the last page: the cat departing for a scary nautical adventure, he's looking at the reader but behind him, you see all kinds of frightening stuff in the distance, including an island with large cyclops cats.
It's *not* Ricard Adam's The Ship's Cat.
Any help tracking down the name or images from this book would be a huge help.
Could it be “The Rainy-Day Cat†by Kathy Wilburn? Here is the synopsis: “Kept inside by the rain, Fanny, a cat, imagines she's on a sailing ship, taming a dragon, casting magical spells, traveling beneath the sea, and exploring new lands.â€
When doing an image search I found an illustration where the cat is wearing a red handkerchief as she encounters the (very ugly) dragon.
Thanks Livia. I'd never heard of "The Rainy-Day Cat", that looks a little similar, but unfortunately that's not it. I'm so impressed you looked and commented, though. Thanks!
Might it have been called Captain Kitty? Your description of the illustration reminds me of it. I recall the book was written in rhyme and started:
Oh, Captain Kitty, where have you been?
I've been sailing the ocean blue,
And (so-and-so) was my good first mate,
And Pearly and Mew were the crew.
Wow, Captain Kitty looks adorable!
But no, that's not it.