The Skeleton and the Cat by Brandon James Scott
- Cana Clark
- Aug 2
- 3 min read
A cloaked skeleton, an old house hidden away... a very adorable black cat? Seems like an odd combination, but it works! The Skeleton and the Cat has a spooky title, but it's a charming picture book featuring a series of cozy short stories, "Wait!" you say. "A picture book of short stories? How does that work?" Artist and author Brandon James Scott makes it work!
Scott uses every surface of the book to tell his tale(s). From the title page, we see a round-headed black cat walking towards a Victorian house surrounded by manicured gardens. This is where our story setup starts.
On the dedication page, we get the moment right before the story begins. (Do you spot the cat peeking over the wall at our peaceful skeleton)?
Each of the five stories ("The Knock," "The Sandwich," "The Garden," "The Book," "The Night Sky") are self-contained but tell a larger story of Cat becoming friends with Skeleton. It's a FASCINATING format for a picture book — and perhaps it will set a trend? I wouldn't be surprised to see more picture books full of short stories because it's a great way to break up the text and make for easy bedtime routines. Imagine! You can read your little one a single short story before bed, and then pick up the book again for a new story the next night. Who knows? With younger generations' shortening attention spans, this might be the picture book format of the future.
Anyway, once Skeleton and Cat are introduced, we get lots of dry humor and adorable interactions. Skeleton has a lack of patience, and Cat is delightfully insistent and joyful. Scott's humor is both visual and textual.
There are visual gags and hidden jokes in all of the illustrations, even as the dialogue brings its own laughs. For example, in "The Sandwich," the portraits on the wall react to Skeleton's lack of sandwich expertise. What a fun detail!
Or how about in "The Book," when Skeleton's library books sport titles that reflect her dreary preference for solitude and quiet? "Okay Expectations," "Miserable Me," and "This is It. 😐" Each of the titles add to Skeleton's characterization while also providing ample amounts of humor. LOVE!
As the sample pages show, Scott's illustrations are unique and full of character. They have this almost 3D-rendered quality to them (note the light and shadow used to make Cat round and give Skeleton's face depth). The illustrations remind me of Pixar concept art.
The Skeleton and the Cat is a fabulous choice for bedtime stories and an interesting case study in narrative structure. It provides artists who are used to creating content for Instagram carousel comics a blueprint for their own picture book of short stories. This format intrigues me, but that's not the only reason I enjoyed the book. The two characters are a classic duo of grumpy/sunshine and each have plenty of personality. The Skeleton and the Cat is funny and sweet, with serious readaloud factor AND visual delight. Highly recommend!
P.S.
I wouldn't be surprised to see this become a series, especially with the seasonality aspect of the main characters. (Smart to keep the first book spooky-free so that it can work for Halloween but also for non-spooky moments). HarperCollins has put a lot behind the book — I've seen it advertised in trade newsletters and spotlighted at tradeshows, and they've even got a merchandising kit featuring standees, sticker sheets, and paper cat ears! I hope this foreshadows more books for Skeleton and Cat!
P.P.S.
I got to meet Brandon James Scott very briefly! He signed my book (to my cat, Ziggy, of course).
Book Info
Title: The Skeleton and the Cat
Publisher: HarperCollins
ISBN: 9780063455887
Author: Brandon James Scott
Illustrator: Brandon James Scott
Pub date: July 2026
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