Cats share our homes, our lives, and the sunny spot in our favorite chair. We may like to think we own them, but in reality, they have the upper hand, uh, paw. Alternately maddeningly aloof and irresistibly affectionate, mysterious yet familiar, they always keep us guessing about their inner motives and thoughts. And just how might a cat express its innermost thoughts? Undoubtedly in haiku, the ancient 17-syllable form of poetry from China and Japan. With clever illustrations in the style of traditional Japanese woodcuts, more than 100 witty "catku" are collected into chapters such as "The Way of the Hunter," "Mind/Body/Spirit," "The Path to Enlightenment," and "The Physical World." Each one illuminates the Zen-like nature of the cat.The prudence of the hunter:"Stealthy and silent,I stalk birds-but listen forThe can opener."The vagaries of the physical world:"Seeking solitudeI am locked in the closet.For once I need you."Catku will delight cat lovers who will recognize the feline attitude reflected in these verses and perhaps realize that the so-called lazy cat perched on the back of a favorite chair is really just in deep meditation, seeking the path to enlightenment while composing a few more catku.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
"My brain: walnut-sized./ Yours: largest among primates./ Yet who leaves for work?" In 100 haikus illustrated with sepia-toned woodcut-like illustrations, Welch, author of two previous books with Andrews McMeel, gives voice to the hauteur and grace of cats using one of the most elegantly compressed verse forms. While the results are rarely poetry ("I don’t mind being/ Teased, any more than you mind/ A skin graft or two"), they conform unerringly to the classic 5-7-5 syllable pattern and clearly reflect an appreciation of feline prowess and cunning. Fierce independence, dog torture, property destruction, sun worship, aquarium watchfulness—all get their 17 syllables. Japanese Kanji characters mark nearly every glossy page, printed in differing shades of faux-brown parchment, bringing something of Japan’s long history of cat veneration to this 5x5 gift book.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Pat Welch is a writer in San Francisco, Calif. This is his third book with Andrews McMeel Publishing.
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Pat Welch is a writer in San Francisco, California. This is his third book with Andrews McMeel Publishing.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Delightful,
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This review is from: Catku: What Is The Sound of One Cat Napping (Hardcover)
This charming collection (far too thin) captures the essence of the cat so perfectly. I love the story of the highly amusing Zen master and his cat almost as well as I love the poems. There are perfect little touches, as when the cat says, "That was Zen; this is Tao".The poems capture both the traditionally essence of the cat (aloof, somewhat destructive, disliking of dogs, prone to lie in the sun) with a few fresh images ("Aloud you wonder - How I can sleep all day long -- While you yak, I can't"). Is this precisely Haiku? No. You get the 5-7-5 but it ends there. References to nature are few and far between, most are seasonless, and almost every poem anthropomorphizes the cat. Is it funny? Absolutely. Every cat lover will enjoy this book.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
What is the Sound of One Cat Lady Giggling,
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This review is from: Catku: What Is The Sound of One Cat Napping (Hardcover)
If you love cats you'll love this. I've added 2 of the catkus to my signature in my e-mails:Kittens, butterflies, And sunsets need no reasons. Add sardines to that. You seek fulfillment Through love, wealth, travel, career. Have you tried kittens? I actually read this book several times while waiting for doctor's appointments. Usually a light book like this would not interest me enough to distract me from my nervousness before an appointment. But this one had me giggling. The illustrations are lovely. This one's essential for cat lovers.
4.0 out of 5 stars
What Could be better than funny and cats?,
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Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Catku: What Is The Sound of One Cat Napping (Hardcover)
Funny little book about our favorite friends, our kitties! Much of the Haiku is familiar, having gone around in several of those ubiquitous e-mails of things that make you laugh out loud, but it's nice to have them all compiled in one place, along with several new ones. And if you enjoy Haiku, it's also a must.
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had been at the foot of the mountain for a thousand years. At the moment of its four hundred thousand and first dawn, the student approached the master. Read the first page New!
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had been at the foot of the mountain for a thousand years. At the moment of its four hundred thousand and first dawn, the student approached the master. Read the first page New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
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