Archive for the ‘books’ Category

Many of you probably have read Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World. If you haven’t I highly recommend it! It’s a wonderful cat story. In the book they film a video of Dewey and I especially wished I could see it. Well now we can! They have included videos of Dewey on his website: www.deweyreadmorebooks.com

We received a special delivery about a month ago but I haven’t had a chance to properly blog about it until now but here we are! We were contacted by someone at Quarry Books to receive copies of the Cat Lover’s Daily Companion and the Dog Lover’s Daily Companion. Even the box that the books were presented in is SUPER cute so A+++ for presentation!

Micky and Fionna were equally impressed!!

Fionna especially liked the red packing grass…

Micky thinks I should start reading the books immediately!

The Cat Lover’s Daily Companion is a cute but practical book to purchase for yourself or give another cat loving friend or relative. It’s a nice coffee table book or bedside table book. The way it’s organized is into 365 days. The book isn’t formally organized so you can flip through it and read on any page or read it in order each day starting on day one. Here is how the Cat Lover’s book is organized:

I plan to read the book in order and will try to share parts that I find especially enjoyable. But don’t wait for me! Get your own copy and take a look for yourself. It’s affordably priced to give as a gift with eye catching artwork and clean and simple layout.

Since I don’t have a dog, I plan to pass the Dog Lover’s Daily Companion along to my sister who lives with 2 pups, a miniature schnauzer and an English Bulldog. I’ll be sure to post her review of the book too. Thank you Quarry Books for putting out such adorable products!!

I haven’t posted in awhile, I know. I guess I’ve been a bit depressed. I don’t feel like doing much of anything. I miss Jake. Jake’s ashes were delivered to the house on Sunday. It was hard but I can’t feel much worse than I already do. I just feel empty. I read this book and it was sad and depressing to fit my mood but it’s a great book. A Snowflake in My Hand by Samantha Mooney is an older book (over 20 years old) but the stories still hold true. I especially like this excerpt:

It is the older cat who intrigues me – the cat who has established his preferences, who growls when his routine is interrupted; the cat who walks up to his favorite chair and stares at the younger feline occupant until she moves. The cat who has been there through the years, who knows every one of his owner’s moods. He who has earned his owners respect and has become a valued friend and companion. Sam was such a cat.

I thought, Jake was such a cat to me. Samantha captures the passing of time and seasons following the death of a beloved companion and all the feelings involved. The first Christmas or Summer following a pet’s death and the emptiness that follows. I don’t look forward to my first Christmas season without Jake AND without Micah nor the one year anniversary of Micah’s death. Sometimes is just seems too much. There are moments when I can watch Jonah and Fionna playing and feel that life goes on but at the same time doing so makes me feel like I’m betraying everything Jake meant to me. A lot of times I’m just angry that Jake was taken from me at 14. Why not 18? But I remind myself that it was the quality of time not the quantity of time I had with him.

On a cheerier note, Wednesday is Jonah’s birthday so stay tuned for some party cake and festivities! I just hope Jonah likes his cake. He’s such a picky eater. We all need something to celebrate.

You don’t need to be a child to enjoy Cynthia von Buhler’s book entitled, The Cat Who Wouldn’t Come Inside. I received the book a couple years ago as a gift and the story is truly special. I collect childrens’ picture books and ones with feline characters are particularly appealing to me. The story is a true life tale experienced by von Buhler herself when she sought to befriend a feral cat who appeared outside her Boston house in the middle of winter. Explore samples of the book’s characters at the The Cat Who Wouldn’t Come Inside website created especially for the book. There are even photos of the Olympus, the real life gray kitty that inspired the story. Olympus has his very own Catster page with links to all his siblings, cats that von Buhler has rescued, cared for, loved and found homes for over the years.

Von Buhler is a internationally known and award winning artist. She created all the characters by fashioning them out of Sculpey™ clay. She makes the sets by hand and then each “scene” is photographed. It’s truly unique and the results are just amazing. If you ever had a doll house growing up you’ll know what I mean when you see the images. Her talented father made the dollhouse used in the book. It took him an entire year to complete! Be sure to check out the section The House, it’s simply fascinating! There is so much background information on the book and all the work that went into creating it on the website.

Von Buhler is in the process of working on a brand new book entitled, But Who Will Bell the Cats that looks equally amazing. You can preview the progress of that book on the blog: But Who Will Bell the Cats: A Work in Progress. Again her dad helped to make all the sets. I am LOVING the Powder Room and Dining Room sets. I’m looking very forward to the book’s release in Fall ’09!

READ THIS BOOK! I loved it. It’s the heartwarming tale of Dewey, an abandoned marmalade kitten not only beloved by the library director who finds him but by the entire town of Spencer, Iowa who adopt him as their bibliocat.

Any cat lover who has shared a powerful and life affecting relationship with a cat companion will be able to relate to this book. The stories are precious and the ending is a real tearjerker. Dewey was indeed a truly special cat.