Jack the Cat by Emily Mills

Jack is a black cat. He is sad.

Jack sits in a pen. Sad Jack taps on the top of the pen. Tap, tap, tap.

He has a plan! Jack slips past the flap. Jack runs in the grass. Will he get a pal?

He spots a frog on a log. Up, up, up, hops the frog.

“Can I hop with you?” Jack asks the frog. “You will not hop well,” grunts the mad frog. “You will just get stuck in the mud.” Jack is still sad.

In the hot sun, a hen sits on an egg. “I will help you hatch the egg,” Jack tells the hen.

“Do not sit on this egg. It will crack!” clucks the hen. Sad Jack trots to the pond.

Plip, plop. A pink fish swims in the pond. “Can I swim with you?” asks Jack.

“You will get wet if you swim in the pond. Then you will be mad,” gulps the fish. “I am not a good pal for you.”

Jack sat on a hill. “This is bad.” “I am just a pest to them!” sobs Jack.

A dog runs up the hill by Jack. “Do not be sad, Cat. Run with me. We can be best buds,” yips the dog.

The pals skip in the grass. They run past the log. They plop in the pond. “This is fun!” yell the pals.