"Big Little Kitty" is the charming tale of a kitten named Muffin who is gifted to little Karen Kay on Christmas morning. Muffin does all of the things normal kittens do, such as tangle a string, admire herself in the mirror, play with mice, pretend to cry when Karen Kay goes out, etc.
One day, Muffin decides she is bored being a house kitten. Living in the lap of luxury isn't exciting enough for her, so she decides to run away because it's "time to see the world." Apparently, she is a highly aspirational kitten who has read Karen Kay's mother's copy of "The Feminine Mistake."
Wordly as she is, Muffin's first stop is the meadow to speak with some friendly cows who try to convince her to stay with them.
Unimpressed, she continues on her journey and meets a shady Choo Choo train who lures her to the city with a promise that "the city has lots more things to see than a field and a fence and a chestnut tree."
Oooook, then. So, she hops on the train and away she goes to see wonderful things like "smoke and sunshine" and "roofs and doors" because they only have those things in the city, you know.
Meanwhile, back at the homestead Karen Kay keeps praying in her cute pink nightgown that Muffin will return someday. And wouldn't you know, since this is a 25 cent children's story, she does! And she doesn't come alone, she brings two other ragamuffin kittens with her! And instead of being cold, hungry, and dirty they all look super cute and have coordinating ribbons tied around their necks. Muffin looks happy, but the other two looked kinda bewildered, like, "we left the city for this?"
Anyway, the point is: Muffin finally comes to her senses and returns to the good life. In the land of tell-tale books, this includes a mouse on wheels, a customized food dish, a cozy cat bed, and a small pink ball of yarn. It does not include living in the city, riding public transportation, and rats.
The End.
Bedtime Story: "Big Little Kitty"
