Customer Reviews

The Craggy Hole in My Heart and the Cat Who Fixed It: Over the Edge and Back with My Dad, My Cat, and Me

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I am not a cat person or a dog person, so when a friend told me I had to read this book, I was willing to pick it up, but a bit wary.The title is way too sentimental for this incredibly deep, brilliant, laugh and cry out-loud book. From the first page, I was hooked--and I never put the book down. Once I finished it, I started it again. Like all of Geneen's books, you have the feeling that she is talking right to you, about you, about your life, your family, your friends, your feelings. One more thing: this is not a book about animals. If you have ever loved anyone, if you have ever lost or are afraid of losing anyone, you will kiss the ground at having found this book.

Okay, I admit it: I'll pick up almost any book with the word "cat" or "dog" on the cover. I'd never read Geneen Roth before, and I didn't expect to like this book very much. But this book won me over the way Blanche won over the author: slowly and subtly.

Roth was in a position to be a great cat-owner. She lived in a city with access to alternative veterinary medicine as well as cat therapists, groomers and more. So when Blanche entered her life, Roth's love spilled over. And it couldn't happen to a nicer cat.

I must admit I turned the pages a little faster when Roth panicked about losing her cat. Blanche is tougher than he looks, I wanted to say.

Many people will find parallels with Roth's family in their own lives -- or their friends' lives. Roth tells the story movingly, but matter-of-factly, without self-pity.

But Blanche remains the hero of this book and Roth's life. Perhaps the most telling passage comes when she writes that, "Blanche is like food once was -- he doesn't talk back, he doesn't hit, he doesn't go away...also, and I think this is important, he doesn't have any calories."

Blanche really does fill a hole in the author's heart but, unlike food, Blanche helps Roth grow and accept new relationships. Roth acquires not only a husband but also a dog. And she takes on a spiritual teacher, distinguished from a therapist in one of the best sections of the book. A therapist, says Roth, helps you heal the damage from what was done to you. A teacher helps you heal from the way you reacted to what was done to you.

The perfect gift for a sensitive cat lover. Then again, what true cat person isn't sensitive?

I fully expected Geneen Roth's book to be moving and interesting - as are all of her books. But this book took me to new places. As the father of an adult daughter, the book brought me to a completely unexpected place of love and compassion for my child. Through her deep and personal disclosure, Ms. Roth has informed my own relationship - the need for honesty and transparency, interpersonal integrity, and, above all, extreme sensitivity to my child's needs and view of me. This book should be required reading for all men.

I have never read a book that hit me SO hard, and touched me so deeply. What most reviewers have already said, is how i feel, but i really need to express it again here.I have only read Geneen Roth in Prevention, but i cant wait to read more of her. I am overweight, a pet-lover (more dogs than cats), and have suffered the loss of both parents. The book is so beautifully written, and i felt like she was speaking FOR ME. I cried so much, that was the only problem! I cried early on in the book and it only got worse, to the end were i was sobbing til i couldnt breathe...but i really needed to let that emotion out, and for me that alone makes the book so special.If you have an eating disorder, love animals, have suffered loss, or just love a wonderful, moving story, buy this book. As another reviewer said, i will never get rid of it. I plan to re-read the ending, "the words of Blanche," many more times. We all need to be reminded about love, and that we're all worthy of it.

This is one of the best books I have read on dealing with grief and loss. Any person going through the grieving process will appreciate Geneen's warmth and humor. Cat lovers will find this book to be a necessary addition to their library. Highly Recommended! Diana

Considered merely as a book about a gal and her cat, it is a good, fun read. But when you add the layers of lessons about love and loss, of releasing assumptions and examining beliefs, of relatives and relationships, of beauty and faith and trust, this is a work which speaks to us us over-and-over again with humor and honesty.

Hands-down, this is the best book I've read this year, fact or fiction. As soon as I finish this review, I'm going to purchase copies to give away to friends and family... and I don't do that often. Then, I'm going to read it again!

A beautifully written account of poignant, deep feelings..Anyone who has ever experienced the sorrow of loss will understand the depth and honesty of this book...the book has it all....humor, love, the reality of life. Roth's writing is fluid, easy to read and reaches down to your very soul.

I picked up this book by accident and found it addressed two of the issues that are important to me - relationship with my father and emotional eating. And the author addresses both very well, with care, sensitivity, non judgement and very little self pity. How she comes to terms with her father - for who he is, just a human whom she loves and with a love that is beyond traditional roles and expectations, is truly remarkable and a great practical lesson for those of us struggling with those very human fathers - not abusive, not particularly bad or cruel - and yet selfish, small minded and all said and done, are fathers anyway.
I am not a definitely not a cat person but a 20lb furry lovable feline does sound rather tempting - not to mention the life he had with all those holistic treatments and counsellors and stuff. I would not mind that kind of a life myself!

Geneen Roth is one of but a handful of writers who I will purchase a book she wrote sight unseen. She has a way with words, and thoughts and feelings that is beautiful and insightful and touching. This book did not disappoint. Having lost my mother a few years ago, and getting to the age where I realize life is fleeting, the message was very timely for me. Anyone who ever lost (and who has drawn a breath that hasn't?)something or someone they loved will surely relate to the well of feelings that are exposed here. I couldn't put it down....read it cover to cover and will go back with my highlighter pen for passages I want to revisit often. Reading Geneen is like being with a best friend. A very wise and loving best friend.

This book was absolutley wonderful! It pulls at your heart and really makes you think. I recommend it to everyone. Geneen has a great way with words. I have enjoyed some of her other books as well such as Appetites and When You Eat at the Refrigerator Pull Up a Chair.