Reviewed by Mamta Madhavan for Readers' Favorite

"Marie’s 9 Lives" is a series of short stories about Marie, the cat. Marie was different from the usual cats. She was forgetful, a glutton and a disaster. Marie was cute and cuddly. The story begins with Marie and her home which is inside a cardboard box lined with a soft flannel in a corner of Mrs. Woodward's kitchen. Her days are spent playing with her brother and receiving kitten baths from her mother. Marie had this uncanny knack of getting into trouble. Whether it was batting at cow tails when Mrs. Woodward milked or smashing flowers in Mrs. Woodward's Iris Garden, Marie's behavior was worsening day by day. The book is a collection of stories about Marie, the cat who finally finds a place of her liking where she would love to spend the rest of her life. The stories deal with the different people she meets in her life, how each one is different from the other and how they influence her.

Every character in the book is etched clearly and they all remain in your mind even after the book is kept down. I think it is a delightful read for any child who is introduced into reading. The language is simple and the stories are short and interesting. Children before they reach the teenage prefer books with illustrations and animals and this book is just that. Marie still carries on with her adventure of going from place to place and meeting new people. Will she ever settle down in a place where she likes or would she be still searching for new places?