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Dewey the Library Cat: A True Story Paperback – April 12, 2011

by Vicki Myron (Author), Bret Witter (Author)

4.7 2,676 ratings

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In the tradition of Marley: A Dog Like No Other, this is the story of a cat who was more than a pet, and the amazing effect he had on the people around him. This middle-grade adaptation of the Grand Central bestseller Dewey features an 8-page photo insert, including exclusive, never-before-seen photos of the Dew!

Now everyone's favorite library cat can inspire a new audience of young readers with his story of courage and love. Abandoned in a library book drop slot in the dead of winter, this remarkable kitten miraculously endured the coldest night of the year. Dewey Readmore Books, as he became known, quickly embraced his home inside Spencer's public library, charming the struggling small town's library-goers, young and old. As word of Dewey's winning tail, or rather his tale, spread, the library cat gained worldwide fame as a symbol of hope and proof positive that one small cat could change a town, one reader at a time.

About the Author

Vicki Myron, the former director of the Spencer (Iowa) Public Library, spent nineteen years with the real Dewey Readmore Books, who she rescued from the library's book return drop on a freezing winter morning. This book, like all the Dewey children's books, is based on Dewey's real adventures in the library. Now retired, Vicki lives and writes in Spencer, Iowa, where she continues to be known as "Dewey's Mommy." She invites you to visit Dewey's website at www.deweyreadmorebooks.com.

Bret Witter has collaborated with Vicki Myron since 2006 and has enjoyed every minute. He lives in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife and two children.

Steve James has always enjoyed making pictures. Steve received his BFA in illustration from Brigham Young University where he studied traditional painting techniques. He now lives in Lehi, Utah with his wife and crazy cat.

Reading age

8+ years, from customers
Print length

224 pages
Language

English
Grade level

3 - 7
Lexile measure

730L
Dimensions

5.25 x 0.75 x 7.75 inches
Publisher

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date

April 12, 2011
ISBN-10

0316068705
ISBN-13

978-0316068703
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Reprint edition (April 12, 2011)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 224 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0316068705
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0316068703
Reading age ‏ : ‎ 8+ years, from customers
Lexile measure ‏ : ‎ 730L
Grade level ‏ : ‎ 3 - 7
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 6.6 ounces
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.25 x 0.75 x 7.75 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #46,872 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #51 in Children’s Books about Libraries & Reading
- #356 in Children's Cat Books (Books)
- #1,622 in Memoirs (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.7 2,676 ratings

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Vicki Myron
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Vicki Myron was born in Spencer and grew up on a farm south of Moneta, Iowa-a town that no longer exists. Vicki graduated from Hartley Iowa High School and moved to Mankato, Minnesota where she worked, married, had a daughter and went to college. Vicki has a bachelor's degree from Mankato State and a master's from Emporia State University, Emporia, Kansas. In 1982, she returned to Spencer, IA to begin working at the public library. In 1987, Vicki was named Director of Spencer Public Library and she served in that position for 25 and ½ years. Vicki retired in 2007 to write this book. She currently resides in Spencer
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Bret Witter
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Hello fellow book lovers! Thank you for visiting my page. I am a full-time professional writer, usually working with a co-author on their inspiring true story or to bring their vast knowledge of some interesting subject to the public. I grew up in Huntsville, Alabama, attended Duke University, and worked a series of forgettable jobs for twelve years until getting my big break when Vicki Myron and I collaborated on Dewey, the story of the famous library cat of Spencer, Iowa, in 2008. I have written 8 NYT bestsellers; combined, they have sold more than 3 million copies, been translated into more than 30 languages, and spent almost two years on the New York Times bestseller list. Both Dewey and The Monuments Men, the basis of the movie starring George Clooney, where #1 NYT bestsellers. I live in Decatur, Georgia, and yes, I'm happy to come to your book event if you are in the area (and especially if you are serving wine and/or cookies). Visit my website at www.bretwitter.com.
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4.7 out of 5

2,676 global ratings

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What a Treasure! It Made Me Smile, It Made Me Tear Up (a Lot!), but Most of All It Touched My Heart

Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2023

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Oh, this book is a little treasure. It made me smile and it made me tear up (a lot!), but most of all, it touched my heart. If you love cats, reading, and libraries—or any one of those—this is a must-read.

Written by Vicki Myron and Bret Witter, this is the astonishing and heartwarming story of a fluffy orange cat named Dewey Readmore Books. Vicky Myron was the director of the Spencer (Iowa) Public Library, and on a frigidly cold morning in January 1988, she found an 8-week-old kitten someone had stuffed into the library after-hours book return box. After a bath, warm blankets, cuddles, and food, the kitten was transformed from a gray, shivering mass to a fluffy orange kitten that captured everyone's heart. It was decided that they would keep the kitten, and its home would be the library.

This book is the story of Dewey, a cat with an outsized personality whose goal in life was to greet everyone who came into the library and then make each person fall in love with him. The individual stories of Dewey's antics are precious, especially how he deals with disabled children, lonely seniors, staid businessmen in fussy suits, and feisty children.

As much as this book is about Dewey, it is also about the author's unlikely and difficult path to library work, the challenges facing all libraries, especially small-town libraries, and the difficulties endured by Heartland communities that have traditionally relied on family farms as their economic driver. Most of all, it is a tender love letter to libraries and their vital importance to the health and welfare of communities.

Bonus: The book is filled with pithy life advice all based on how Dewey acts towards people and makes them feel. Here is my favorite:
"Find your place. Be happy with what you have. Treat everyone well. Live a good life. It isn't about material things; it's about love. And you can never anticipate love."

This is a delightful, almost magical book I will long remember.

One person found this helpful

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Mr. Dana

It's not just about Dewey - it's about his Community

Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2009

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This book is one of the most outstanding, and touching books I've ever read. In fact, I've just started reading it for the second time, something that I've never done with any other book. This story made me fall in love with a cat I'd never even met.

I do think that some of the previous reviewers missed a point and erred in their reviews when they complained that Vicki tells too much of her own story or that of her town and people of Spencer, Iowa. As you read this book, I think you'll realize that Dewey cannot be separated from the people he affected without ruining the story or at least losing some of its impact. I have to admit that when I first was reading through the book, I did ask myself: "why is she telling us this?", or "why is she giving us her biography in a book that's supposed to be about Dewey"? But then I realized exactly why she was smart enough to include all of this seemingly unimportant history.

You see, this book is not just about Dewey. It's not just about Vicki Myron. It's not even about the town of Spencer and its people and the awe they felt for Dewey. It's about their connection to each other. It's about how Dewey affected them, each in their own unique way. It's about the effect he had on the countless people who simply passed through Spencer, many of them coming just to meet Dewey. And let us not forgot all those, who, like me, never even met him. And yes, there is something for you, dear reader (if you have a heart beating in your chest, rest assured, Dewey's story will affect you). As you read this book, you may very well find yourself connecting with Dewey. That comes in part from understanding the community of people and the hardships they faced, the life-altering events they experienced and then how they dealt with it all. Even those events from many decades ago, helps us truly appreciate the profound effect Dewey had on the people he reached out to. Understanding Vicki and her life tells us all the more about not only Dewey's affect on her, but also the whys and wherefores of his presence, and his fascinating ability to sense who needed him and when. It's a story about how the community of Spencer, Iowa came together to deal with tragedy and crisis, usually with Dewey as the unifying factor. It teaches us that not only we can do the same, but that we should do the same. And let's not forget the Library. Dewey made his library important and famous. He did that, perhaps for all libraries, and highlighted their true significance and their need in each community, or perhaps, more accurately, our need for them, something we have lost connection with in our modern technological age. He let us know that the real reason they exist is not merely as a warehouse for books, but as a meeting place for the heart of our true selves. It is a place for true community connection. He was the conduit for that connection with Spencer and all who dropped in for a visit.

Let's say, for the sake of argument, you eliminate the background story of the man who had just become a widower, or of the one who has just lost his job, with no prospects for the foreseeable future, or the homeless man, who sat by himself day after day. We'd be left with nothing more than a cute little anecdote about Dewey sitting on their lap and giving them some affection. We'd miss out on the reason(s) why each of them was there, and most importantly, what that little cat's love meant to these men. We would be ignorant as to why they smiled for the first time in weeks - even if they weren't aware of the smile escaping there face. Taking it a step further, if you thus eliminate all the background stories and biographies, etc., then we'd miss out entirely on Dewey's true worth and the value he had to his Community, both Spencer's and everyone else with whom he came in contact, whether personally, or through this book. All we'd be left with would be a collection of feline anecdotes. Instead it tells us of how a cat lifted the spirits of community when they needed it most. It seems as though that's all he lived for - to help the people he loved, which was all of us.

I think it also teaches us that animals serve and important role to us humans. Animals, like Dewey, give us unconditional love, regardless of who we are, what we've been through or how we react to our circumstances. Beyond that, they can help us to see what really matters. As they comfort and calm us, they allow us to perhaps see things in a better light, from a different perspective, and certainly with a better mood. It also tells as that the grief from losing a beloved pet can go as deep as any other grief we experience, and that there is absolutely nothing wrong with feeling that way. This was a story that needed to be told. I for one, am glad Vicki told us, for I, unfortunately, had never even heard of Dewey Readmore Books and until I saw this book sitting prominently on the shelves of every book story in my community. One look at that face on the cover, and I knew I had to buy this book and read it! Never did I suspect I'd end up reading it twice, well, twice so far. Nor did expect to learn all the things I did from a cat name Dewey Readmore Books.

So please, read this book. Read it for enjoyment. Read it to someone you love. Read it to laugh. Read it to cry. Read it to learn something about life and love and community. But most of all, understand what it's really all about, then perhaps you'll not only enjoy the book, you might even learn a life-lesson from it. I think one of them is that all of us should probably visit our local library a lot more often than we do. It's all but certain that you will come to love the late, great Dewey himself.

20 people found this helpful

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Very touching book and not just about cats

Reviewed in the United States on December 6, 2023

Verified Purchase

I came online just now to leave a review for this book, and I ended up first reading a lot of the reviews, which I will admit I did not do before I read (or even bought) the book. It seemed like a cute book about a cute cat. It is, but it is a lot more than that, it is about all of us and how a community can come together. And yes, it is about a cute cat too. I would have loved to meet Dewey.

This book also gave me comfort, having just very recently lost my 18 year old cat, who had also been abandoned near a downtown building, but fortunately he found us. So, I was not prepared for just how sad the last chapters of the book were and I cried. But, Dewey's story carried on and the end of the book is very uplifting. I won't be able to read it again anytime soon, but believe me, I will read it again. And then probably again sometime. I hope you will read it too.

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Top reviews from other countries

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Toni

Lickety split delivery

Reviewed in Canada on October 21, 2021

Verified Purchase

I bought this as a birthday gift so I have not read the book myself. However, it arrived the next day, quicker than promised, in excellent condition and the story is starting well! It has proven to be a very popular gift.

Mrs Julia Priestley

Dewey: The small-town library-cat who touched the world

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 4, 2024

Verified Purchase

Thank you so much for this lovely book - Dewey: The small-town library-cat who touched the world. My colleagues and I purchased this for a much loved friend who had retired and returned to his home country of Australia. As we work in a library and he often helped us with all of our IT queries, we wanted to gift a book to him that he would enjoy and could remember us by, hence why we purchased Dewey: The small-town library-cat who touched the world.

He has been in touch and confirmed that he has now read this book and enjoyed it. He's updated us on his new life in Australia and I'm glad that he has this great book as a reminder of us all. Thank you for sending this lovely gift, I would highly recommend it to others. Very best wishes, Julia, Kingswinford.

Roland O.

Excellent story of a beloved cat that touched the hearts of millions of people around the world

Reviewed in India on June 30, 2023

Verified Purchase

I used this book to further enhance my love for kittens and cats.

nuria garcia

Very good description on life in the USA Midwest

Reviewed in Spain on April 27, 2022

Verified Purchase

It could look a bit childish at first glance, but the book is full of humanity and solidarity. Not only for cat lovers or children!