The Cat Who'll Live Forever and over one million other books are available for Amazon Kindle. Learn more

Kindle Edition
 
   
Have one to sell? Sell yours here
The Cat Who'll Live Forever: The Final Adventures of Norton, the Perfect Cat, and His Imperfect Human
 
 
Start reading The Cat Who'll Live Forever on your Kindle in under a minute.

Don't have a Kindle? Get your Kindle here, or download a FREE Kindle Reading App.

The Cat Who'll Live Forever: The Final Adventures of Norton, the Perfect Cat, and His Imperfect Human [Hardcover]

Peter Gethers (Author)
4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)


Available from these sellers.


Formats

Amazon Price New from Used from
Kindle Edition --  
Hardcover --  
Paperback $10.94  

Book Description

September 4, 2001
The final, poignant chapter in a trilogy of bestselling true stories about a floppy-eared Scottish Fold named Norton

Peter Gethers was a confirmed cat hater until the day he received a six-week-old kitten as a gift. Walking the streets of New York with Norton tucked into his pocket, Gethers began forming an intense attachment to his new pet. Before long Norton was flying with his owner on the Concorde to Europe, sipping milk in Parisian cafés, and eating custom-made pounce pizzas at Spago. Soon Gethers began to detail Norton’s adventures in print, and with The Cat Who Went to Paris and A Cat Abroad the duo made history as well as many, many friends around the world.

The Cat Who’ll Live Forever chronicles the latest in Norton’s astonishing adventures, celebrity encounters, and worldwide excursions, culminating in his heartwarming¯and heartbreaking¯final cross-country trip. The first half of this book will have you smiling and laughing as Norton changes the lives of the Italian owners of a thirteenth-century abbey in Sicily, attends movie premiers with Sir Anthony Hopkins in the chic Hamptons, and relaxes at the dog run in Greenwich Village’s Washington Square Park. But as Norton gets older his schedule slows down and he struggles with the aches and pains and physical inconveniences that go along with age, teaching his human the essentials of loving and caring and coping with illness. Ultimately Norton passes along to his owner the most valuable lessons of all¯how to deal with death and grief, how to live life on your own terms, and how to appreciate and savor the joyful times that come along while we’re here on earth.

The Cat Who’ll Live Forever is, on one level, a touching meditation on love and relationships and dealing with the pain of inevitable loss. Above all, it is a deeply moving and life-affirming tribute to a humble little animal who never let stardom go to his head and always understood the meaning of true friendship.


Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Fans of Gethers's two previous chronicles of life with his cat, Norton (The Cat Who Went to Paris and A Cat Abroad), will be delighted by this third installment. Here, Gethers (who was feline-unfriendly until he received Norton as a present) recounts Norton's physical deterioration (kidney failure, cancer) and eventual death in 1999 at age 16. Having avoided filling the book with homilies about the nature of life and death, Gethers wryly notes that he's produced something "closer to Tuesdays with Norton than... to Meowing and Nothingness." Devoting more attention to Norton's astonishing international fame than to the cat's "final adventures," he relates Norton's (and, not incidentally, Gethers's) many brushes with greatness: Anthony Hopkins, Roman Polanski and Wolfgang Puck are among his famous fans. Gethers is at his best describing his own mixed feelings about Norton's success; fans at book signings, for instance, regularly talk to the cat and not to him. Readers will also enjoy Gethers's candid assessment of their lives together, such as his admission that he was "too selfish to get a second cat for [Norton] to socialize with," and that he slaved daily over healthful home-cooked meals for Norton but often got take-out for himself. (On-sale Sept. 9)Forecast: Norton was the first cat to get a New York Times obit, and People magazine included him in a "Notable Deaths" feature along with Stanley Kubrick, Joe DiMaggio and King Hussein. An author tour and inevitable media attention will give this book the proverbial nine lives.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Adult/High School-Norton, the urbane yet humble Scottish Fold, became famous as The Cat Who Went to Paris (1992) and continued his adventures in Provence in A Cat Abroad (1994, both Fawcett) but, to the disappointment of his many fans, took early retirement at the age of 10. Gethers now reveals the details of the feline's final years. Here Norton travels less-though he still makes an occasional appearance at Spago, takes the Concorde to Europe, and upstages film stars from Paris to the Hamptons. Though kidney failure and cancer slow him down and ultimately defeat him, he never loses his charm, composure, or talent for making the most of his life. In his old age, Norton makes a farewell tour of all his favorite spots, undergoes medical procedures with dignity, and enjoys the sun on his preferred park bench-inside a most amusing dog run in New York City. Though it's clear that Gethers has a high-powered career, he somehow succeeds in portraying himself simply as a callow fellow blessed with an awesome cat. As Norton's health problems gradually take over both their lives, the author learns how to care for an invalid and, ultimately, to mourn the death of a loved one. Those who knew Norton when he was young will be grateful that Gethers shared this story. Others can find a different perspective here on medicine, aging, friendship, and grief; the value of humor; or just the meaning of life.

Christine C. Menefee, Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.


Product Details

  • Hardcover: 256 pages
  • Publisher: Broadway; 1st edition (September 4, 2001)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0767906373
  • ISBN-13: 978-0767906371
  • Product Dimensions: 7.6 x 5.3 x 1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (46 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #999,807 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

 

Customer Reviews

46 Reviews
5 star:
 (42)
4 star:
 (3)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:
 (1)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
4.8 out of 5 stars (46 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 55 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A ten star Cat and a ten star Author, April 16, 2002
This review is from: The Cat Who'll Live Forever: The Final Adventures of Norton, the Perfect Cat, and His Imperfect Human (Hardcover)
I admit I bought this book for extremely self serving reasons. Our cat Bill was put to sleep in March 2002 when the tumor on his tongue abscessed and he basically began to die from starvation. And having never had to have a pet put to sleep and it being so damn painful and so final I was looking for a book that might help my husband and I deal with this profound loss. Bill had been given to us as a kitten and had literally helped Ron out of a coma after being hit by a dunk driver. So I needed a book by someone who would understand what we had in Bill and why the pain was like a knife in the heart.

And I cannot recommend this book highly enough and plan on reading the other books about Norton. Because the author "gets it." Understands the wondrous gift a cat can be and that a cat is such a member of the family and not a "pet."
We read the book aloud and laughed and cried. Loved hearing of the people like Harrison Ford, Mel Gibson, Sir Anthony Hopkins, sports legends, and the wee small black cat that won Norton over and continued to grieve after Norton died.
The Lauen Bacall story is a keeper and found Ron and I lughing hysterically.

But I guess it was finding a kindred soul in Peter Gethers the author and knowing that we werent such square pegs in a round hole when it came to caring for a sick and dying member of the family who happened to have four legs that has helped us in our grieveing process. Reading that yes, someone else dealt with medicine and bad bowels and bladders and trying to get pills down a cats throat and drinking out of a toilet when Norton got so sick. I have a picture taken a month before Bill died of him drinking out of the toilet with his insatiable thirst. And like Norton who loved the heated car seat Bill craved the heating pad we kept on the back of the sofa where he would lay near us as we read or watched television.

Thank you Peter Gethers we will probably never meet you in person but you have done what no physician or psychologist has been able to do. Understand and connect. Bless you.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars get the hanky ready, September 5, 2001
By 
Gail Giles (Woodlands, Texas) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Cat Who'll Live Forever: The Final Adventures of Norton, the Perfect Cat, and His Imperfect Human (Hardcover)
I bought a Scottish Fold after reading Gether's first two books. And was pleased to find that Norton's qualities are are a part of the breed. Loving, calm, etc. And total people magnets. The last book is cheerful, more stories of Norton's exploits and travels. Not until the last third of the book do we see Norton start to "fade." When Gethers sees that Norton is nearing the close of his life he takes him on a final road trip.
I read, I cried, I read some more and cried a lot more.

The odd thing is that this is not a depressing story. It's a story that ends and it ends just as Norton lived--with love for his human.

Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No


16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful story!, March 10, 2004
By 
Holly Wade (St. Louis, MO USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   
This review is from: The Cat Who'll Live Forever: The Final Adventures of Norton, the Perfect Cat, and His Imperfect Human (Hardcover)
This is a continuation of the story of Norton the Scottish Fold from The Cat Who Went to Paris. It is such a beautiful story of friendship and love, but be forewarned, you will cry while reading this book, since it is the story of the last months of Norton's life. Both the author and the subject (Norton) are exceptional beings and the love and joy they experience together is an absolute love story. This is a book for anyone who has loved a kitty and for anyone who has lost a wonderful feline. Mr. Gethers and Norton are a match made in Heaven and their story is a joy to all readers. I had a hard time finishing this book because I knew the outcome when I bought it, but I was still compelled to read it because I knew that both the subject and the auther were extraordianary. It's beautiful, touching, heart-wrenching and true. If you have ever loved and been loved by a kitty, you will enjoy this story!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews 
Was this review helpful to you? Yes No

Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews











Only search this product's reviews



Inside This Book (learn more)
First Sentence:
Ever since I made the decision to write this, the third book about my gray, floppy-eared Scottish Fold pal, Norton, I have been trying to decide exactly how to begin. Read the first page
Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
drip bag
Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Sag Harbor, New York, Peter Gethers, Scottish Fold, Long Island, Los Angeles, Marty Goldstein, New Orleans, Thomas Jefferson, Cat Abroad, East Side, Sweetwater Farm, Roman Polanski, Sybil Christopher, Washington Square Animal Hospital, Marcello Mastroianni, Norm Stiles, Ann King, Nancy Alderman, Sandy Koufax, South Salem, Wall Street
New!
Concordance | Text Stats
Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Search Inside This Book:

Citations (learn more)
This book cites 7 books:
See all 7 books this book cites
 
1 book cites this book:

What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?


Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 
(3)

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
Search all Amazon discussions
   
Related forums



So You'd Like to...



Look for Similar Items by Category


Look for Similar Items by Subject