A Celebration of Cats [Paperback]

Roger A. Caras (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 2004

In this, the ultimate book for cat lovers, Roger Caras celebrates a lifelong passion with personal anecdotes, charming tales and rich historical fact and fancy. Written with loving detail and accuracy, this delightful book provides a fund of knowledge for every cat lover, covering the topics of evolution, domestication, breeding, history, cats in art, magic and folklore. A unique compendium, it is illustrated throughout by various artists, making it an enchanting the amusing addition to every cat lover's bookshelf. The featured artworks include works by Steinlen, fifteen by Kuniyoshi, Goshun, Robert Leydenforst, Chu Ling, Hokusai, two by John Singer Sargent, two by Hiroshige, Carl Walters, four by Edouard Manet, Gottfried Mind, a 13th-century Persian pottery cat, a ceramic figure of a cat (c.1750), a French prehistoric carving, ancient Egyptian drawings and paintings, an American scrimshaw, a 19th-century Russian cat, the carved tomb of Madame Lesdiguieres's cat and a Japanese painting of a cat with a bird.

Editorial Reviews

Review

As the companion to A Celebration of Dogs (1982), Caras' tribute to Fells cams is equally sincere but, at times, ranges too far. In attempting to not only document the ancestry of the species, but also to investigate the roles cats have played in numerous cultures (from worshipped "gods" to abhorred demons), Corns skips dizzingly through the centuries, compiling endless, all-too-brief stories of cats in mythology, religion, and literature. In examining the feline's current popularity, Caras, an ardent cat-lover, describes them as, among other things, objects of beauty ("living art"), "tranquil role models," and "hedonistic materialists. . .like ourselves." ("It seeks the soft, it seeks the warm, it prefers the quiet and it loves to be full.") Also included are descriptions of all the cat breeds, as well as an explanation of the social graces involved in cat shows (events that cats tolerate, says Caras, "with a stiff upper whisker"). Though Caras' strong convictions about spaying/altering to alleviate the overpopulation problem are welcome, one questions the double-standard he applies to purebreds. The second half of the book offers personal accounts of people-cat relationships. Many, including the story of a catatonic young boy who is drawn out by a cat, are warm and touching; others, about human abuse of cats, are gruesome, and perhaps should have been left out. In the final chapter are choice anecdotes about the eccentricities of Caras' own furry companions from childhood on, which he presents in his characteristically colorful, witty style. A mix of legend and narrative (with knowledgeable tidbits on cat care sprinkled here and there) - of particular appeal to purebred fanciers and Caras followers. (Kirkus Reviews) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 238 pages
• Publisher: Robson Press (May 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0860517071
• ISBN-13: 978-0860517078
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,111,829 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cats and human relationships with cats, June 24, 2002

By 

Neal C. Reynolds (Indianapolis, Indiana) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Celebration of Cats (Hardcover)

Roger Caras shows himself, here, as being completely an animal lover who also has considerable insight into human nature. Thus, this book comes from a broad and objective perspective. He doesn't favor cats above other domesticated animals, but treats them as equals to those others we have chosen as companions. And because he does have deep understanding of human nature, this book is centered specifically on the human relationship with cats.

He isn't sparing in his treatment. He portrays the whole gamut of historical treatment of cats, not only the Egyptian worship of cats, but the deplorable practices especially in France which were unspeakably cruel towards cats. Our domesticated cats are traced from their wildcat antecedents, and then into the categorized breeds. All this is done with a sense of humor and with love and empathy for the feline species.

The typical attitudes of people toward cats, those of both the extreme cat lovers and the cat despisers, are explored and debated. The statement is made that generalized stereotyping of animal species is just as inaccurate as similar stereotyping of people by race or religion. Each animal is an individual.

Every aspect of our relationship with cats is explored, the history, the psychology, the biological factors, the mythology, breeding and cat shows, etc. He brings out the beneficial influences cats can have in our lives, but balances it with discussion of those who are well-meaning, but who should not have cats. Only in the final chapter does he go into stories about his own cat family.

This is an excellant book and I recommend it strongly to all cat lovers and those who seek understanding of cats and of those of us who love them.