3.75/5

Cute book! The charm and whimsy is in the illustrations most of all, but it has a nice message too about the importance of stillness and living in the moment.

I’ve only recently come around to cats (being a bird person my whole life I had something against them since one tried to jump at my budgie in his cage while at the vet when I was a kid 😅 also until recently they were my top allergy after dust 🥲) so this was unique for me to get a sense of what cats might be all about.

I think I’d probably have liked it even more if I was a total cat person because I would’ve been around cats more often and relate to seeing them sit in their stillness. Still, I like the message about living in the moment and it also says a lot - in just a few pages - about dealing with big emotions and anxiety too in how the cat behaves.

I do think it was a little repetitive and might worked well enough as a short picture book but the illustrations were so adorable that I didn’t even mind.

I loved how the illustrations of the book felt like a cozy colouring book. The colours that were used in the illustrations had a very calming effect on me. I loved seeing the cat Geogre's dreams and thoughts.

This was adorable!

George is such a good boy and the insight into cat's brain that he offered was very wholesome and cute. The illustrations are very nice and the writing's a bit poetic at times which went really good with the whimsical drawings, especially while George was fantasizing about living in his cardboard castle.

Thank you NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for a honest review ✨

The book contains beautiful illustrations, mainly of cat George as well as his human. It describes all the thoughts that can come to a still mind, thereby helping children learn about stillness and peace in a non-threatening way. The end of the book has cat facts that make for a interesting read even for adults.

This was a cute book about a cat named George and what he thinks about in the still moments of his life. It gives a lot of thought into what he may be thinking, regardless of words, and I think it's a cute story and narrative.

This is a very cute book. In the sweetest way it teaches kids how to use their imagination and intuition when being still. The illustrations are where this book shines.
They are so well done and sweet and make the words come to life to create a beautiful little personality for George the cat.

This story is quiet and comforting and very sweet. The art is adorable and the colors are really soothing. I think anyone who loves cats would love this book. It’s exactly what I wanted it to be.

Thank you Netgalley for the opportunity to read What George Thinks When He Sits Still for free!

This sure as hell was something else, I'll tell you that.

So, I do recognise that this book is for kids in pre-school, so obviously, a lot of the short writing and almost whimsy to it is going to be different to an almost 30-year-old person compared to a 3-year-old. But I do believe that just because it's a kids book doesn't mean that they don't deserve better.

Firstly, I don't want to accuse the book of being AI, as it's a terrible accusation to make of an artist. However, I've had my (albeit fanfiction but still) stolen recently by AI, and it sucks. So if this author DIDN'T use AI, then where the bloody hell was an editing team before this went out to publish?

As others have noted, there's missing heads in beds, the cat missing its tail. Sometimes I noticed the cat's tail would be somewhere else on the page, or when it was inside the box, its tail WRAPPED AROUND THE BOX. So either, this cat has an impressively long tail, his owner cut a hole in the box just for the tail, or... it was AI. There's also inconsistencies with the colouring of the cat, his head and tail would be a light colour, whereas the body is a dark colour. Or sometimes the cat's eyes would only be black dots, to then be coloured blue then back to the black dots, then to a colour similar to its fur.

Not only that, but the pronouns of George and the POV changes. So that does make me wonder if even the writing is AI too? Or it just didn't get any final edits either. One moment it'll be in third-person, then in first-person. Sometimes George is a he, sometimes George is a she.

Then towards the end you have this wall of text about how cats might not be able to say I love you, or even seem like they actually like you, but they do. And that's great, I have two cats (I've had one before my current ones), and while I'll always be a dog lover, my cats make me so happy. But it just feels so odd to have text that is pretty simple and easy-ish enough to have kids follow along, with breaks for pages of art, to then have a wall of text with no breaks to explain the science of cats.

I'm really disappointed about this book. It looked cute, but to see that the author didn't seem to care, along with the publishers, is disappointing. On top of that, who is Caroline Bell? There's no Instagram account, or Twitter, or whatever IF you wanted to find more about her. I get that sometimes authors will have pen names, but wouldn't there be some sort of social media even with the pen name? This is all just too fishy that even a cat wouldn't eat.

Anyone who has ever loved a cat will love this story. Full of enchanting words and sweet pictures, this book will delight all cat people. You'll fall in love with George by the end of this story!

Thank you to Netgalley for the ARC! This was such a sweet little book! The artwork was adorable and I loved learning all about George and the things he loves most. Reminded me of my furbabies!

This book is magic!

"What George thinks when he sits still" captures the essence of life and love. It's so soothing and relaxing. The author has described her cat's habit of finding peace and the sense of stillness that completely changed her perspective. Her cat, George teaches her the power of stillness and finding the moments of joy and happiness in every moment of life. Whether it's the perfect sunlight or a cosy blanket with just the right amount of warmth and comfort, it's all about your perspective.

George lets us discover the happiness in the smallest of things, living the magical dreams and being grateful for the safety, comfort, love and affection. George also highlights the importance of creativity and imagination, they are the key ingredients to make your life beautifully magical and mesmerizing.

I would highly recommend this book to all and for cat enthusiasts you will be delighted to find George as your friend within pages. I think this book has something for everyone.

What George Thinks When He Sits Still is a lovely children's book about the magnificence and beauty of the cats that we share the world with. George is a special cat-- he loves his human friend and spends his days purring and staring intently at her trying daily to help her understand how wonderful and special she truly is. George shows his love in a multitude of ways, and those ways are described and illustrated by the author Caroline Bell in great and loving detail. This special book is a wonderful addition to readers who share their world with a special cat or perhaps are simply hoping to be adopted and befriended by one.

I really thought I would like the cute art and hoped for wholesome quotes or story's along with it.
As the art was cute like I hoped for it didn't feel consistent. The cat and the moths changed in art style a few time throughout the book. One of the beds was not logically drawn at all. Which made me doubt neither they were drawn be artist or AI. Either way they were cute, just not accurate and cohesive.

I saw pretty much the same with the texts going along. The underlying message is nice, but I doesn't seem to be written in q cohesive way. Even if there isn't a full story line texts should be in some sort of a flowering order which this was not. I also felt like some sentences weren't even correctly English. And the story switched multiple times from perspective..

It could've had great potential, but this really isn't publishing worthy.

I read this arc from netgalley and something about it just felt off. The cat, George, looks different from page to page. Sometimes his ear is on his back instead of his head. On the page with the ice cream cone, he's got an extra arm. The idea is cute but both the writing and art are soulless and most likely AI which is very disappointing.

0/5 stars

This is pitched as an illustrated picture book that follows a cat's thoughts and routine. That would be a very good idea and concept for cute and wholesome illustrations if it weren't for the fact that this is blatantly made by AI. I'm surprised there wasn't any prompt that slipped in the """editing""" process.

There can be found: oddly shaped feet, inconsistencies (cat is inside a box but at the same time its tail is peeking outside of it), paws that disappear, changes in the point of view in which it's narrated, and most important of all, no consistency in the drawing style of George; he keeps changing breed and even color throughout it.

AI art can't be tolerated.

Thanks to NetGalley and Chantilly Cat Press for the digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The art for this is delightful. A few interesting little facts, and reminders to be present and in the moment, to enjoy the little things.

That said, the direction felt a little disjointed. A mixture of therapy sections, facts about George and cat facts in general, in no particular order. I thought initially this was for very young children, but there are times when it would very much go over the heads of young children so I'm not sure who the target audience is!

If you're here for cute cat vibes though it does deliver.

This was such an adorable book. Lovely illustrations. I was smiling all throughout reading the book. You can feel George's love for Carol and Carol's love for George.

Kids will love this book

I wish a note had been included somewhere to mention that this was made with AI art. The further along you go, the more inconsistent the drawings become. It looked like a collage of different cats rather than George on each page.
Some of the pages were sweet, but the book was lacking flow, especially in the second half. Some pages felt more like the type of writing you'd find on a motivational poster.
This was cute and entertaining, but I think something really beautiful could've been achieved with the talents of a (human) artist and a bit more attention to crafting a full story from start to finish.

This is such a sweet, slow book! The art throughout is super cute, but the writing itself does tend to be a little jumpy and repetitive. Don't expect too much out of this, but for a one-time-read, it's cute.

Aww I loved this so much! 5 ⭐️
I read this one with my toddler and it was the perfect read for both of us. It helped my toddler settle down for a quiet moment, and while she may not have fully understood the words she loved the gorgeous illustrations. What a stunning colour palette and design style, the pictures were our favourite aspect of the book. The words unfolding before me helped me personally, as a stressed toddler parent, so slow down, look out the window and notice the leaves blowing in the wind, the sound of the neighbours wind chime, and the warmth on my hands from my cup of (still warm! Yay!) coffee. It was a lovely reminder to romanticise life, even the small things, and enjoy slow moments. And funnily enough, turns out George’s list of favourite things is very close to my own. Thank you for the opportunity to read this one early, I think we will add the physical copy to my daughter’s library!