A funny, pleasing read for cat lovers of any age.
A cat owner chronicles his feline-dominated household.
A journalist by day, Tarte (Fowl Weather, 2007, etc.) has also entertained animal lovers for years with humorous tales from the veritable zoo of animals with whom he and his wife, Linda, share their Michigan home. Here the author depicts the six feline buddies who deign to cohabitate with him. Before the narrative begins, an illustrated map of the “Ground Floor of a House Overrun by Cats” and cast list including the six “Cats of Characters” suggest the playful tone to follow. Although as a pet owner Tarte demonstrates an uncommon enthusiasm for animals (his household also includes parrots, rabbits, geese, ducks and parakeets) and rare openness to helping any in distress, his journalistic objectivity and self-deprecating introspection lend heartwarming humor to this account of cat-inspired chaos. Though some of the hyperbolic, unnecessarily dramatic descriptions may take some getting used to, Tarte’s more contemplative passages contain real insight into both human and feline behavior. Particularly moving is the author’s self-assessment of his dynamic relation with his cats, as he depicts each with the care typically reserved for a beloved. Explaining his affinity for animals in general, Tarte writes: “I loved their attentiveness, the grace with which they dealt with problems, their tenacity, and just about every other attribute they had that I lacked.” But what also helps normalize this tale is the author’s humor in realizing when his and his wife’s behavior exceeded normal pet-owner behavior.
A funny, pleasing read for cat lovers of any age.Pub Date: April 10, 2012
ISBN: 978-1-56512-999-3
Page Count: 304
Publisher: Algonquin
Review Posted Online: Feb. 19, 2012
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2012
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis...
Privately published by Strunk of Cornell in 1918 and revised by his student E. B. White in 1959, that "little book" is back again with more White updatings.
Stricter than, say, Bergen Evans or W3 ("disinterested" means impartial — period), Strunk is in the last analysis (whoops — "A bankrupt expression") a unique guide (which means "without like or equal").Pub Date: May 15, 1972
ISBN: 0205632645
Page Count: 105
Publisher: Macmillan
Review Posted Online: Oct. 28, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 1, 1972
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