How to Talk to Your Cat (Talk to Your Pets) (Hardcover)

by Jean Craighead George (Author), Paul Meisel (Illustrator) "You are being honored if a cat is living with you..." (more)
Key Phrases: cat talk

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

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 4-8
  
• Hardcover: 40 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (February 16, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060279680
• ISBN-13: 978-0060279684
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 8.8 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #617,698 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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  #49 in	Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( G ) > George, Jean Craighead
  #91 in	Books > Children's Books > Animals > Cats > Nonfiction

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

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

By A Customer

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 16 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.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars HOWLING GREAT FUN AND FABULOUS ILLUSTRATIONS!, February 12, 2003

By	Alan W. Petrucelli (THE ENTERTAINMENT REPORT (ALAN W. PETRUCELLI)) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

Let's start simply and honestly, the same way these tomes approach their subject matter, and say these are the cat's meow! Jean Craighead George has penned two ultra-thin volumes on communicating with our best friends and felines, and each is a howling success. The Newberry Medal-winning author does what someone like Elizabeth Masrshall Thomas has tried to do in books tens of thousands words and pages longer and could not. Jean, by George, had found the winning ways to teach pet lovers how to chat with their four-footed pals. Her writing is sparse: "A lick is not a kiss. It is a statement that says you're a wonderful leader." Her advice is refreshing: "Growling is aggressive talk. Don't growl back. Dogs don't like that." As special as her words is the whimiscal use of arkwork: actual color photos of the animated author interacting with illustrations (by Sue Truesdell) of equally animated cartoon cats and dogs. (We just love the one of George on all fours, rubbing heads with a cat!) Four paws up!