The Surprise Kitten

It's unfortunate this book is out of print... I have my own copy from when I was a child, and I wanted to buy a copy for my niece. It was written in 1974 and first published in the U.S. in 1976, which would have been when I was around 5 years old. We are told the story of a little black kitten who finds herself among a family of white cats & kittens. The mom cat takes in the new arrival, and all is well. They love to play together, especially hide and seek. Pepper, the black kitten, is disappointed that she is always found so easily when they play this game in the snow... she prefers the dark basement, which the white kittens don't like because they stand out. Pepper wants to be white so douses herself with flour, while the white cats want to be black so cover themselves in coal dust. Soon they discover what has happened and realize how silly it is to want to be anything other than yourself -- as long as you are happy and loved, it doesn't matter. As the last line of the book says, "Yourself is the best thing to be." The illustrations are bright and large, and there isn't too much text on each page. I loved this book when I was little! I especially liked it because we had cats, and they were my favorite animal. And I think the book sends a very positive message to kids, which may even be helpful in mixed-race families or stepfamilies.