Socks

After a rough start, and a brief internment in a mail box, Socks the cat has landed on his feet. He belongs to the Brickers-a young couple who dote on him. Then a baby arrives in the household and Socks discovers that the people he'd trained so well no longer consider him the center of their universe. This is devastating, but eventually he finds a new place that everyone can be happy with. This is an hilarious book by Beverly Cleary (Morrow, 1973), told from the cat's point of view, and Neil Patrick Harris does a slam-bang job of presenting it. He provides voices for each character but, more importantly, he reads the story with humor and expression, bringing it to life. Listeners feel a kinship with Socks and root for his success, even while acknowledging his foibles. Both children and adults with roar with laughter at Sock's antics and cringe at his misdeeds.