Cat's People

This is a story about a black cat and the people he befriends - Núria, Collin, Omar, Bong and Lily. The cat has a variety of names - Cat, Gatito and Itim. He lives on the street but each day is fed by Núria who feeds a number of cats in the neighbourhood each morning before going to work. As Núria likes wearing bright clothes Cat thinks of her as the Rainbow Lady. Then there is Collin who builds Cat a shelter near the back door of his home. Cat's name for Collin is Awkward Neighbor Guy. Omar (Cheery Mailman) delivers the post to local residents and Cat often accompanies him on part of his journey, especially when Omar stops at Bong's small grocery store and purchases Cat a treat. Then Lily (Bright-Pink Person) arrives in the neighbourhood looking for the sister she never knew.

The story in Cat's People by Tanya Guerrero is revealed via the viewpoint of Cat and his five people. We learn not only of the challenges and fears they face but how their individual care for a stray cat brings this small community together helping them make decisions impacting on their future. Once you start reading Cat's People you will want to continue reading until the story ends.

Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them

Australian writer, Susannah Fullerton, has compiled a book about seventeen authors whose lives have been ruled by cats and / or have included cats in their books. 

The authors include: Dr Johnson and his cat Hodge, Horace Walpole and his cat Selima, Robert Southey and the cat Rumpelstilzchen, Andre Dumas and his cat Mysouff I, Eward Lear and Foss, Charles Dickens and Bob, Mark Twain and Bambino, Collette and La Chatte, L M Montgomery and Daffy, Sir Winston Churchill and his cat Nelson, Ernest Hemingway and Boise, Margaret Mitchell and Old Timer, Dorothy L Sayers and Blitz, Paul Gallico and Sambo, Dame Muriel Sparks and Bluebell, Doris Less and Magnifico, plus Dame Lynley Dodd and her cat Wooskit. The authors often owned many cats but the book concentrates on one special cat for each writer.

At the end of most chapters there is a section called Paws For Thought with information about other cats and their owners. The chapters in Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them contain illustrations of cats by Susie Foster. Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them is a book for cat lovers as well as for lovers of literature.

The Cat Who Saved Books

Rintaro Natsuki became the new owner of the second-hand bookshop, Natsuki Books, after the death  of his grandfather. The original plan was that he would go and live with an aunt but that plan changed after he met Tiger, a talking cat. The cat was on a mission and needed help to save books that were being destroyed. This led to Rintaro, Tiger and later Sayo to journey through four labyrinths to save books.

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sosuke Natsukawa explores the importance of books in the lives of individuals and how reading can open up new worlds for us to explore. As Rintaro travels on the expeditions he comes to understand himself better and what his future should be. He also learns more about the importance of books.

Statements about books and reading (pages 195-197) include:

Books have tremendous power.

Books can give us knowledge, wisdom, values, a view of the world ... the joy of learning something you didn't know before and seeing things in a whole new light. Books teach us how to care about others.

Books are filled with human thoughts and feelings ... we learn about the hearts and minds of other people besides ourselves.

Human beings don't live alone, and a book is a way to show that. 

Empathy - that's the power of books. 

The Cat Who Saved Books is a heart-warming read about the love of books and literature. Once I started reading this book I just had to keep reading until the final page.

 Sosuke Natsukawa has also written The Cat Who Saved the Library.

The Cat Who Saved the Library

Nanami spends most of her time in the library so she knows the collection well. Until one day she noticed that books had vanished from the shelves. Feeling concerned she watched some of the other library users until one evening she spied a strange man who may be the thief. Nanami began to follow him until a cat appeared and warned her that danger lies ahead.

Nanami and Tiger, the talking cat, work together to retrieve the missing books that are now in a building in a different world. The entrance to this other world is via a passage in the library but there is no guarantee that it will always be there. Another passage, Nanami discovers, leads to a book shop. 

In The Cat Who Saved the Library by Sosuke Natsukawa,  Nanami and Tiger discover a world where the occupants are expected to mechanically follow what others are doing and not think for themselves. Questioning decisions and beliefs is harmful and not an option. That is why books that encourage readers to question different theories and beliefs, to experience different worlds and ideas through literature and come to their own conclusions are being removed. 

For those who love books and reading this is a book worth considering for your to be read list. It is a sequel to the first book in this series - The Cat who Saved Books.