How to Talk to Your Cat [Paperback]

Jean Craighead George (Author), Paul Meisel (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 6 and up | Grade Level: 1 and up

Find out what your cat is really saying -- and talk back!

Jean Craighead George, Newbery Medal-winning author of over 80 books about nature and animals, demonstrates in words and photos how to communicate with that ever-mysterious, ever-lovable animal -- the cat.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Perhaps no one is better equipped to help us understand our cats than Jean Craighead George, award-winning author of over 80 books about nature and animals. This delightful picture book for cat lovers of all ages makes it perfectly clear who has the power in a human-cat relationship: the cat. But you already knew that. What you may not have known is that cats meow as many as 19 different meows (all interpreted here), that cats never purr when they are alone, that no one knows what part of the cat a purr really comes from, and what cats' various tail positions mean. Illustrator Paul Meisel's charming, cartoonish cats prance through the pages with photos of the author herself in a clever, endearing display of the human-feline relationship. Dog lovers will want to sniff out the companion title, How to Talk to Your Dog. (Ages 7 to 107) --Karin Snelson --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

These approachable and informative paper-over-board volumes belong on the shelf of anyone who lives (or is contemplating living) with a dog or cat. George (Julie of the Wolves) displays her affection for and expertise on these animals--as well as her breezy humor--as she focuses on ways in which dogs and cats communicate their needs and moods to their owners. Best of all, she offers tips on making it a two-way conversation. The dog-centered volume, for instance, covers how a canine uses its tail as a "flag of feelings" and communicates through a spectrum of barking sounds. George's chatty, easygoing style incorporates numerous wry asides: "Although it is fun, it is not very rewarding to bark at your dog. He doesn't understand your bad accent and may twist his head and look at you in confusion." Yet she explains how to express, through voice and posture, various messages, such as "Good night" and "I am boss." For cat lovers, she explains, "Cat talk is a complicated, self-centered language" spoken through movements of tail, ears, whiskers and the pupils of the eyes. They are fiercely independent, says George: "They own you. You cannot own a cat." In both volumes the artwork features Truesdell's (And the Green Grass Grew All Around) signature amiable cartoon animal characters interacting with silhouetted photos of the author, an ideal visual complement to the personal, jovial tone of the narrative. Ages 6-9. (Feb.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 6 and up
  
• Paperback: 40 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins (February 4, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060006226
• ISBN-13: 978-0060006228
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 8 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,728 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #2 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Animals > Cats > Nonfiction
  • #2 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( G ) > George, Jean Craighead
  • #7 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Animals > Pets > Nonfiction

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 53 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Book filled with inaccuracies, October 6, 2007

By 

J. Phillips - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Talk to Your Cat (Paperback)

My daughter and I read "How to Talk to Your Cat" and were amazed by the number of inaccuracies stated throughout the book.

The author states that cats are "completely self-sufficient and can leave you at any time and go off and make a living." It's this kind of ignorance that contributed to the explosion in the feral cat population we face today! People pick up and move and abandon their cats thinking they can fend for themselves. Hunting is learned by watching other cats, and then putting those lessons into practice until they are perfected. Offspring of non-hunting cats rarely make good hunters themselves. In other words, house cats that have never been outdoors could never just "leave at any time and go off and make a living." They'd starve to death!

She also states that "cats are loners" and they "don't like company, including other cats." Cats are not anti-social. They have intricate social interactions with their own kind. Two of my cats are very social; they love the attention of people (even those they just meet) and the camaraderie of other felines. Feral cat colonies are found in every city and town throughout the world--the perfect example of their social nature. Cats also possess the ability to form close friendships with people. I own 8 cats and I have a unique relationship with each one. They are my babies and I couldn't imagine life without them.

She recommends only having one cat. She goes on to state "cats dislike other cats and will fight." Cats are social beings; they do like other cats and the only time they fight is to establish territory or male dominance, not because they dislike one another.

The author tells us that cats are o.k. with our leaving; they will not sulk. She doesn't know my cat Amber. Once I pull out the suitcases, she knows what's about to follow. She follows my every move when I go from room to room to gather things to pack all the while whimpering. I once had to cut a vacation short when her caretaker told me she wasn't eating or using the litter box. She was so upset by my absence.

Finally, she states that "the deeper the claws dig [into furniture], the more status the cat has." Huh? Scratching is a way of marking territory. Depth of the scratch has nothing to do with status. Feline social standing is measured by the amount of land a cat can lord over it. At the top of the hierarchy are unneutered males, followed by females that haven't been spayed, spayed females and at the bottom are the neutered males.

Her book would have been better suited for the fiction, not non-fiction classification.

I find it ironic that the author doesn't even own a cat, yet somehow she feels she has the knowledge and expertise to write a book about them.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Purrr-fect!, June 5, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: How to Talk to Your Cat (Talk to Your Pets) (Hardcover)

I happen to own an earlier version of this book -- a paperback book with only black and white drawings. This book with charming and goofy watercolor cats contains all the useful and entertaining information as the first one but will be so much more accesible to children. It has helped us understand our inscrutable pets and to better meet their needs which is why we are here in the first place. A MUST for the cat lovers library.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining Read for any age, May 14, 2000

By 

Tracey Griffith (pa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Talk to Your Cat (Paperback)

I really enjoyed this book. I have read many books on cats and this is just about the best one. Informative yet entertaining when reading it. You will understand you cat better and have fun doing it. Very well written on a level for both young and old and not boring anyone.