Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat #1: Evil Alien Warlord Cat #1 (Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat, #1)

by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth

Robb Mommaerts (Illustrator)

Klawde had everything. Sharp claws. Fine fur. And, being the High Commander of the planet Lyttyrboks, an entire world of warlike cats at his command. But when he is stripped of his feline throne, he is sentenced to the worst possible punishment: exile to a small planet in a quiet corner of the universe... named Earth.

Raj had everything. A cool apartment in Brooklyn. Three friends who lived in his building. And pizza and comics within walking distance. But when his mom gets a job in Elba, Oregon, and he is forced to move, all of that changes. It’s now the beginning of summer, he has no friends, and because of his mother’s urgings, he has joined a nature camp.

It’s only when his doorbell rings and he meets a furball of a cat that Raj begins to think maybe his luck is turning around...

Heavily illustrated, with a hilarious, biting voice that switches between Raj and Klawde’s perspectives, this is the story of an unlikely friendship that emerges as two fish out of water begin to find their footing in strange new worlds.

• ISBN10: 0593225236
• ISBN13: 9780593225233
• Publish Date: 7 July 2020
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: US
• Publisher: Penguin Putnam Inc
• Imprint: Penguin Workshop
• Format: Paperback (US Trade)
• Pages: 224
• Language: English
• URL: https://penguinrandomhouse.com/books/isbn/9780593225233

Reviews

[Melanie]

My review and an extended sample of the audiobook are posted at Hotlistens.com.

This is a really cute middle grade story. When I saw the title I had to pick it up. I mean, how could I not learn more about an evil alien warlord cat. Add to that that I’ve listened to both narrators before and really loved their work. I just had to try it.

Klawde, the evil alien warlord cat, comes from the planet of Lyttyrboks. He is exiled to Earth and finds refuge from the liquid falling from the sky with Raj, a pre-teen boy (they never mention age, but do mention middle school) from Brooklyn, who has just moved to Elba, Oregon. He loved city life. He had three friends in his apartment building. He had pizza shops and comic book stories on his block. It was his dream. Then his mother got a new job in Oregon. Now he has nature and no friends. Plus his mom is making him go to nature camp. His life now sucks. That is until a cat rang the doorbell.

This is a really cute science fiction story. There are many things that will make you laugh, like the names. Klawde’s actual name is Wyss-Kuzz. Oh and the nature camp, was actually apocalypse survival camp. The counselor was nuts. The story is really cute and you get both sides of the story with Raj and Klawde POVs.

My biggest fault for the book was that Klawde went back and forth between calling them “the humans” or “the ogres”. I would’ve thought he would have one and stick with it. Ogres was his original title for humans.

Narration
The narration of this series is great. We have two narrators. Oliver Wyman reads Klawde’s parts and Vikas Adam reads Raj’s parts. Then I’m not exactly sure who does all the smaller parts in-between. I think I figured out a few, but not sure on them all. Anyway, I think they were both a great fit for each of the main characters. Klawde had this snootie, uppity voice you would think of for a cat that wants to rule the world. Raj’s voice was a that fo a boy. I loved how Vikas Adam changed his packing based on Raj’s emotions. When he would get excited, he would really speed up the way kids do. I loved all the voices in the book, not to mention the array of cat noises. I could see where a kid would love to listen to this book as he reads along with a physical book (which probably has some great pictures). I loved books with read-along records as a kid (yes I know I’m showing my age).

**I like to thank the publisher for providing me with a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.