41 pages • 1 hour read
Colleen AF Venable, Illustr. Stephanie YueA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Katie receives a letter from Ms. Lang (Madeline) offering her a job. When she goes up to the fifth floor to ask her about it, Ms. Lang tells her she has to work late and needs a cat sitter. She offers her $30 a night and Katie eagerly accepts. Ms. Lang then reveals that she has 217 cats and that they’re all extremely well trained. They bring Katie a cup of tea; one of them shows her how to use the TV remote; another is using a computer; and all of them use the bathroom rather than a litter box. Before she leaves, Ms. Lang gives Katie a fingerprint scanner that locks and unlocks everything in her apartment.
Katie initially enjoys a moment cuddling with cats all around her, but they quickly scatter and start causing trouble. They tear the apartment apart and one of them orders pizza. As Katie scrambles to control the cats, the buzzer goes off; the building manager, Mrs. Piper, is at the door to investigate the commotion. Cats are not allowed in the apartment, and Katie is worried she is going to get Ms. Lang in trouble. However, the cats hide once the door is opened and Katie claims she is just cleaning.