Recently I’ve read The Cat Who Saved Books and because I didn’t have enough yet of Japanese authors and stories where cats are importand to the plot, I couldn’t overlook this little gem.
One Book, four stories, even more cats, but everything is more or less intertwined. It’s a lovely tale of the mundane, but what even is mundane? There’s a woman who doesn’t know wheter her boyfriend and herself are even a thing, a girl that ist a gifted painter, but not everyone appreciates her talent, one which battles the anxiety of stepping out into the world and another woman which devoted a lot of time of her life to taking care of her in-laws. They’re all in different circumstances, but they do have one thing in common: a cat who decided to be by their side and help them.
The writing feels almost magical, even though the stories are about everyday things, but maybe that’s the point, isn’t it? It includes alternating points of view, sometimes she’s talking, sometimes her cat, very straightforward, about whatever comes to their minds in this moment. In the end there’s this lingering feeling, how lucky I am to have a cat.
Dog persons may enjoy this book too, because there is one dog in this story, John, who’s a very philosophical fellow, a character the cats sometimes turn to to get a piece of advice.