Once [a cat] has given its love, what absolute confidence, what fidelity of affection! It will make itself the companion of your hours of work, of loneliness, or of sadness. It will lie the whole evening on your knee, purring and happy in your society, and leaving the company of creatures of its own society to be with you.
— Théophile Gautier, Ménagerie Intime
Category: Books
Quote: Lewis Carroll on Cats
And how do you know that you’re mad? “To begin with,” said the Cat, “a dog’s not mad. You grant that?” “I suppose so,” said Alice. “Well then,” the Cat went on, “you see a dog growls when it’s angry, and wags it’s tail when it’s pleased. Now I growl when I’m pleased, and wag my tail when I’m angry. Therefore I’m mad.”
— Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
Quote: John Steinbeck on Cats
Are cats strange animals or do they so resemble us that we find them curious as we do monkeys?
— John Steinbeck, The Winter of Our Discontent
Quote: Oliver Herford On Cats
I sometimes think the Pussy-Willows grey
Are Angel Kittens who have lost their way,
And every Bulrush on the river bank
A Cat-Tail from some lovely Cat astray.
— Oliver Herford, The Rubáiyát of a Persian Kitten
With a Dog AND a Cat, Every Day Is Fun: Book Review
With a Dog AND a Cat, Every Day Is Fun is an anecdotal manga written and drawn by Hidekichi Matsumoto, following the everyday antics of the mangaka’s dog and cat, and sometimes lizard.
Inu is a fun-loving little dog with a heart of gold and a giant personality. Neko is a grumpy cat who’s a softie at heart. And between them, they keep Matsumoto very busy and very entertained.
This manga is relatable, humorous, and adorable, with a unique style that sets it apart from most manga, and includes photographs of Matsumoto’s real-life dog and cat in each volume, so you can see the faces behind the antics.
As of now, there are eight volumes available in English, with a ninth promised by Matsumoto, so it’s also not a long manga to get into. It’s great for busy pet owners who just want something cute and funny to relax to.
Approved by my cartoonist, Sunny, and myself.
I give this manga two paws up! Try it if you get the chance!
Quote: H.P. Lovecraft on Cats
Through all this horror my cat stalked unperturbed. Once I saw him monstrously perched atop a mountain of bones, and wondered at the secrets that might lie behind his yellow eyes.
— H.P. Lovecraft, The Rats in the Walls
Quote: Lewis Carroll’s Cheshire Cat
“All right”, said the Cat; and this time it vanished quite slowly, beginning with the end of the tail, and ending with the grin, which remained some time after the rest of it had gone.
— Lewis Carroll, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking-Glass
Anipals Read
Hi pals! Pumpkin here. I have something fun to share with you. Did you know we have a book club? It’s called Anipals Read (#readpawty).
Around 2011 or 201212, @MaggieTKat started #Readpawty. We’d all read the same book and meet once a month to talk about it. Of course, sometimes we strayed from book talk and caught up with each other, but mostly we really talked about the book. We’d meet on Twitter and use the hashtag #readpawty to keep the conversation together.
Well, it’s been many years, and #readpawty has evolved. We now meet on the second Tuesday of every other month (February, April, June, August, October, and December). We still meet on Xtwit, but since Xtwit’s gotten harder to use, we meet in a DM group. Sometimes, we don’t pick a book for all of us to read and discuss, but talk about what we’ve individually read since we last met.
We also use it as a set time to meet up. We’re all very busy anipals, and are online at different times, so we rarely get to connect. This way, we know we’re going to see each other at least once every other month.
We also have a group on Goodreads called Anipals Read. I keep a bookshelf there that lists everything we’ve read as a group since 2013. There are also suggestions there of books to read.
If you’d like to join #readpawty, even if it’s just to hang out with us, email me your Xtwit name. I use email to send out announcements, and I’ll need your Xtwit name to add you to the DM group. Hope you join us!
You can find me on Xtwit as @pumpkinpuddy. I’m also on FB (Cheryl Katz), Bluesky (pumpkinpuddy.bsky.social), and Discord (pumpkinpuddy), but I’m mostly on FB. The easiest ways to reach me and be sure I see it are email or FB Messenger.
Betty and Rita Go To Paris by Judith E. Hughes
Wavy Paws. Today, I am reviewing a picture book travelogue for Meet Me At The Bookshelf called Betty and Rita Go to Paris with Text by Judith E. Hughes and Photographs by Michael Malyszko.
Ah, Paris. What could be better?
The French Crown Jewels, you say?
A little robbery at the Louvre, you say.
No, indeed. Just feast your eyes on the 84 pages of the City of Lights as seen by two adorable black labradors, Betty, age 11, and Rita, age 7.
Woof, what? You saw a picture of Betty and Rita lingering outside the Louvre?
*Cough* Well, page 26, right? They look thrilled there.
Um, no.
No one they know planned that heist. This is way before that event.
This 1999 book is a gorgeous photo journal instead; indeed, it’s a love note to dogs and travel.
I give it five paws way up.
Paris lends itself to great photography. These top dogs enliven Paris, featuring joyous photos alongside poetic writings within the pages. You will dream of big-city lights and your own furry friend.
Did you ever wish you could see Jim Morrison’s grave with your peeps?
Enjoy the Eiffel Tower all lit up at night?
Do you ever want to see the original Notre Dame Cathedral?
Sniff out a Hunchback or a baguette?
I do. I think books transport us into worlds we would love to explore. You may reside in Paris briefly, nods, if you suspend reality.
Sort of like you must suspend disbelief when the peeps tell you your dinner bowl is late, da nerve, because of a random “time change.”
As we move into fall and my favorite season, winter with all the snow, we like to look at this book to inspire my pup outings.
My momma reads this lovely book aloud to me and did it for all my sisfurs before me. In fact, my biggest sisfur, woo do not know her, she got to travel with my peeps to Paris, nod, nod. Her picture gives me joy, picturing them present in April, with budding trees, my dish full, on schedule, dear woman.
Oh, I digress.
Betty and Rita pose at all the most important Parisian places.
My crucial locale, however, exists here, alongside Momma.
Betty and Rita, like all pups, pose while eating, romping, wrestling, and leaping about in fountains. They no doubt got treats for all the posing *looks longingly at my dinner bowl*.
I loved these two Labradors, and I know you will too.
Ooh look, dinner is here. Gotta run. See you next time when you Meet Me At The Bookshelf.
Wuv You.
The Secret of Secrets by Dan Brown
Wavy paws. Today, we have a mystery thriller to review for Meet Me At the Bookshelf.
The author of The DaVinci Code, Angels and Demons, and Origin, Dan Brown, authored this 671-page novel called The Secret of Secrets.
Fifty millionty billion walkies could have occurred during Momma’s reading of this dud.
Nod, nod. Two stars, tops.
Prague is where the story unfolds. A gorgeous city that is up to date with top-notch science, surveillance, and technology. Robert Langdon, in his sixth installment of these books, has fallen in love with a talented noetic scientist named Katherine Solomon. She is attending the Charles University Lecture series to present her new and exciting theory and book on human consciousness.
Katherine dreamt of a woman, crowned radiantly like Liberty, who smelled of death, wielding a spear. Thereafter, Langdon senses the hotel’s impending explosion, triggers an alarm that clears it, and then jumps from the window into the water. Katherine is nowhere to be found. Langdon gets a note stating that Katherine is being held and to venture to an assigned location. He does, and trouble ensues.
Langdon found that someone tortured and killed Doctor Brigita Gessner, an eminent Czech neuroscientist, in her lab. She had invited Solomon to speak in the series. Local authorities appear complicit; the Golem, protector of Jewish lore, might be involved. Where, however, could Katherine be?
Dr. Gessner’s assistant, Sasha, tries to help Langdon find the killer. Sasha owns two Siamese cats, Harry and Sally, and she named them after the movie. She met the doctor there after being institutionalized for seizures.
I would chase these two cats.
Sasha has a pretty tame fling with embassy staffer Michael and tells Langdon they are in danger. The two cats often watch out the window, waiting for things to happen, much like Momma and me.
Sasha is soon missing as well.
Who is feeding Harry and Sally?
Will the police arrest Langdon and try to pin Dr. Gessner’s death on him?
Indeed, back at Katherine’s publishing house in America, someone has breached security and deleted Katherine Solomon’s new manuscript. The book publisher cannot reach her to raise any concerns. In fact, someone kidnapped her editor, took him for a joyride around town, and interrogated him to ensure no other copies of the manuscript existed.
The author based the editor on the real-life Dan Brown editor, and the editor should have spent his time editing the book instead of acting as a character within it. Nod, nod. From here, the editor could cut 350 pages.
The Golem is protecting someone in the book. He is a deadly protector. The two cats and I, I think, liked him.
I give the Golem five paws up, and this book only two paws.
I loved the symbolism and new theories in the book. Science is fun, and The Secret of Secrets blends current accepted ideas with new theory. The best parts were the Golem and various embassies and police chases. Very exciting. The book is heavy on the human consciousness theory and gets boring and long-winded.
Dan Brown tries to create a love affair, but it is bland and uninspiring.
Harry and Sally might’ve solved the mystery faster, with increased enjoyment, compared to Robert Langdon.
Where The DaVinci Code was epic, creating controversy and deep discussions for many years, this book falls short, even if better edited. No one will discuss this book in cafes worldwide.
The secret is to take a fun walkie with your dog or cat instead.
Wavy paws and next time being treats to Meet Me at the Bookshelf.
Kissy noses.
