In a book that reflects her years of work at New York City's famous Animal Medical Centre, Samantha Mooney creates a miracle of her own - the unforgettable story of dedicated professionals who, faced with sometimes incurable illness among the animals they care for, nevertheless find companionship and laughter in that caring. But above all, this is a story of cats: Clancy, a tiger-suited Irish rogue who refuses to be caged; gentle Oliver Cromwell, who summers in Maine and makes friends with his own personal seagull; and one tiny black cat, Fledermaus, who breaks through Samantha's own wall of frozen grief after her father's death and shows her the rewards, and the risks, of loving again.

Samantha seems to spend more time with the clinic cats than her own, she certainly never mentions taking her own cats on holiday. I enjoyed reading about all the cats but there wasn't a lot of feeling in the writing - I'm sure the feelings were there, but they didn't come through in the words I read. I wasn't particularly moved at any point, although I did shudder to think what some of these treatments cost. While I did not find Mooney's writing particularly evocative, I acknowledge the poignancy & sadness inherent in owning & losing pets, treating & euthanizing them.

I think the "wall of frozen grief" in the blurb was an overstatement - the author certainly grieved, but I couldn't see anything that needed icebreaking, & if it had, surely her own cats would have provided the comfort she needed.

I enjoyed all the cats, but I found Oliver Cromwell & his seagull particularly moving. As a pet owner, I know how short the lives are of our furry companions, & how private is our grief - society still doesn't acknowledge the effect of the loss of a much loved pet. I shed a tear & then concentrate on all the happy times we had together - that, after all, is the point sharing your life with pets. If you concentrate on the loss instead of the joy, what is the point of having pets at all?

Sent to DubaiReader for the June Book a Month offer.

Thanks for offering this book-a-month book, it was here when I returned from nearly a month away, so I may be a bit delayed in journalling.
I'm really looking forward to reading this as I'm very involved in Feline Friends in Dubai and I run the book sales that raise a large part of our cash. This is right up my street :)

I'm reading this now, nearly finished, in fact. Samantha Mooney seems to be so tied up in the cats that she doesn't have much of a life outside. In fact, I suspect that she has some problems socially, from her comments about the hospital around the time Jay leaves.
I found it very strange that she took clinic cats on holiday, from my experience of cats, nothing could be more stressful for them.
I struggled to remember who the cats all were sometimes, but overall an enjoyable read.

I'm thinking I may take this down to my local vets next time I'm there. I think they may enjoy it :)

Thanks for sending it Catsalive!

Final review

A book for cat lovers.

I enjoyed this book, a memoir by a veterinary nurse who was working in the oncology section of New York City's Animal Medical Center. She obviously has a passion for cats; she seems to love those in the treatment centre as much as her growing population at home.
Sometimes I thought she seemed to relate to cats better than people and the sorrow at the loss of a couple of her most loved patients was possibly even greater than at the death of her father.

The book was published in 1983, so I'd expect that some of the treatments are now dated. Similarly, I wonder if cats would be allowed to wander around the facility with such ease, particularly Clancy, who had left his own household of cats because he might pass on his form of feline leukemia. In spite of being potentially contagious, he was given free reign of the offices and waiting area.
I was also most surprised to find that Ms Mooney took certain cats (never her own) on holiday with her. When we moved house our cats were petrified for days, I cannot imagine a 'holiday' being a pleasant experience for them.

There were quite a few cats throughout the book and I struggled to remember all their names and ailments, but they were all adorable and it was so sad when any of them died. There was an overall positive feel however, as the doctors and staff lovingly treated each animal, hoping to increase its life span and quality of life.

This is definitely a book for cat lovers, and if that's you, then snap this one up.