My Five Tigers
12 journalers for this copy...
Next is David, a little black half-Siamese kitten, acquired as a playmate for Heathcliff. Best-laid plans, etc., but things work out (more sniffling here) for a while (I dare you not to sniffle at this bit). And then Solomon, a rescued waif with double paws; and mackerel-striped Moira makes the fifth, although I suspect the cat-tales continue long after the book ends. All in all, a thoroughly charming story of the lives of cats and the people they live with. [The book was published in '56, and I think I first read it in the early '60s. Since then my family's cats have included a black half-Siamese - two, come to think of it - a big grey longhair, cats with double paws, a very rabbit-like cat, and a mackerel tabby or two; purely coincidental, I'm sure...]
This is the same Lloyd Alexander who wrote the Prydain Chronicles and assorted other fantasy novels; according to his interview in The Cat On My Shoulder, this was only his second book, and he always tries to "sneak a cat into whatever I'm writing".
Am looking for another copy of this to release, as I want to hang on to mine, but this seems to be another example (along with the wonderful Doreen Tovey books about her Siamese) of books that remain inexplicably out of print...
Mailing order:
GlasgowGal (Scotland)
arturogrande (UK)
Jalna (UK)
Lizabeth86 (Connecticut)
geniedances (Texas)
prplpec (Georgia)
MaryZee (Maryland)
monado (Ontario)
caligula03 (California)
...and back to GoryDetails (New Hampshire)
I've sent this off to GlasgowGal in Scotland to kick off the bookring. Hope you enjoy it!
:-)
It's a lovely wee book all about a couple and their 5 cats. It's not a "story" as such as more of a diary of their day-to-day lives, but it is a lovely book all the same and I thoroughly enjoyed reading it. The author has a lovely turn of phrase, and a wonderful way of phrasing things. I especially like the "nightclub in the cellar" idea :-)
Thank you GoryDetails! It made me miss my wee tiger who had to be adopted out after I left university :-(
I already have arturogrande's address, so I should be sending this off early next week (Monday or Tuesday). I hope you enjoy it too!
(Oh - and I meant to say, my favourite was Moira. I like a girl with a bit of a fight in her!)
Although obviously a much-loved favourite, it has been treated with care and respect, as all books should be.
The drawings inside are lovely, and as today has seen four inches of snow (quite unusual for these parts), I am looking forward to curling up in front of the fire to begin reading it - with a glass of red wine and, of course, my two 'tigers' to accompany me.
He writes beautifully - the cats' own individual personalities and quirks come over wonderfully, and his description of David's confusion and anguish over the loss of his friend will move you to tears.
I could see aspects of the two tigers who currently share my life in his cats - Paisley is a dead ringer for Moira in terms of personality, while my big ugly bruiser of a tom, Yawper, reminds me a lot of the terrorist next door, Felix Cat.
This book is a must for anyone who loves cats. The only downside for me is that it was not long enough.
I am now mailing it to fellow BookCrosser Jalna - enjoy it, it's lovely.
I have read huge number of "cat stories" over the years but for some reason the last one was quite a while ago which makes this all the more welcome.
I will be passing it on to Lizabeth86 as soon as I have an address. I hope the 5 Tigers enjoyed their little holiday in the UK!
Update: Book left me on 19 February 2004.
Thanks for sharing this book with us Gorydetails. It is a real treasure. I may have to find a copy for my own PC.
Mailed to next in line 4/29/04
(the package was badly damaged and the book bent.
I will read it asap and get it on its way to the next person on the list!
He describes beautifully, the individual personality and quirks of each of his feline companions. The description of David's reaction to the loss of his friend hit home with me. I witnessed, first-hand, a similar reaction among my own cats. When Pepper died suddenly, his close friend Patches, grieved terribly. She never really got over her loss. It brings tears just to recall the memory.
Anyone who loves cats will thoroughly enjoy this book. It's lovely.
I will send it to Prplpec who is next on the list.
Thanks so much for sharing this, Gorydetails! :)
Will mail tomorrow to MaryZee.
Oops, almost forgot - thanks for the postcard Prplpec. That bldg must be some sight - is that the original KFC sight?
The only other book I've read by this author was The Arkadians, a mythology-style fable he wrote much later. I'd never heard of this prolific author before, and I'd certainly like to read more by him.
I had to chuckle at David's nightclub - that was definitely my favorite part.
Decided I should add a bit in here about my cats - I'm a one-cat person, since we never had cats in the house growing up. I currently have an orange and white tom (Sizzle), who loves to explore the outdoors and on hot humid days, when my favorite place is in the air-conditioned house, his favorite place is outside under a tree, in the shade. Of course, in the wintertime his favorite place is near the woodstove or on top of a heat register.
We used to have a loveable tiger tomcat (Baby) who adopted us. His favorite place when you were reading was on top of whatever you were reading. But Sizzle isn't that much of a lapcat.
Baby used to love to show us what he could catch - ground moles, baby rabbits,... The only time I've ever been speechless in my life is the night that my husband thought he had a baby bunny in his mouth, opened the door to let him in (to take it away), and we realized he had a rat by the scruff of the neck
=-O
Fortunately, he was able to kill it before it got away from him (did you know that when a rat is scared his tail sticks out just like a pencil? - that's how I knew my cat didn't have a rabbit)
Mailed this out to Monado on Friday, 6/4.
I love books that observe the personalities of cats, so I'm looking forward to this one.
- Monado
CAUGHT IN TORONTO ONTARIO CANADA
I love books that observe the personalities of cats, so I'm looking forward to this one. It starts out, "I was not always partial to cats..."
- Monado
Sorry, I wasn't logged in the first time.
I read this in one sitting. The cats are well observed and the tale is told in simple, straightforward language without too much ascribing of human emotions or motives. I certainly recognized some behaviour from my cats. They have their likes and dislikes, personalities, favourite hobbies, and their own friends and enemies. Not knowing the signal system, the author helped the kitten to usurp the rank of second cat by feeding it higher up than the older cat.
I also enjoyed the drawings of cats in soft pencil by Peggy Bacon.
I enjoyed the author's The Chronicles of Prydain series, which I think became a children's cartoon movie, "The Black Cauldron." I didn't realize that he was a cat lover as well. I recommend also Doris Lessing's book about her cats, Particularly Cats.
We have three cats: Shelley, a dignified tabby male; Emily, a skittish and acrobatic female; and now Kit Marlowe, an amiable and playful sub-adult.
I read this on vacation in Newport Beach, California, so I'm hoping to send it or drop it off to caligula03, who is also in California.
RELEASE NOTES:
Returning to GoryDetails on December 4.
I'm thinking I'll take this well-traveled book along to tonight's Meetup and see if it has any more hops in it...
Released 19 yrs ago (12/14/2004 UTC) at Daniel Webster Highway (See Text For Details) in Nashua, New Hampshire USA
WILD RELEASE NOTES:
I plan to take this well-traveled little book to tonight's BookCrossing Meetup in the coffee shop of Barnes & Noble at 7. [I'll be the one in the BookCrossing hat.] If you're interested in the book, feel free to stop by; I'll give it to whoever asks first, even if they're not a BookCrosser (yet!).
If there are no takers, My Five Tigers will come home with me, as I don't leave unattended wild releases inside bookstores - life's confusing enough as it is...
*** Later: this book went home with BCer cujoslunch. Hope you enjoy it!