She and Her Cat: Stories

As the guardian for two cats of my own, this book speaks to my soul.

Here we have a set of short stories about human relationships in many different guises told from the perspective of their feline companions. Each story is linked to the others, focusing on different characters but so that by the end the book has sketched an overall satisfying narrative arch.

We meet a succession of women navigating loss; abandonment; guilt; lack of self confidence and loneliness to name a few. But each one is helped to overcome their challenges by their loving and loyal cat companions. This is a book with a deeply humanistic and feminist sensibility at its core, but one that expresses it gently.

I don't think its quite right to say this is a cozy read; some of the themes here are intense, but the sparse style of the authors coupled with the distancing achieved by telling the stories from the perspective of the cats helps to lower the emotional temperature and makes the book feel ultimately wholesome, uplifting and humane. There are also plenty of cute cat moments, which we all need!

A beautiful little book that is the perfect accompaniment to a rainy afternoon, a cozy jumper and a cup of tea. Curl up with your own feline friends and enjoy.

3.5 ⭐

This was a cute book that makes you just want to snuggle up with a fluffball.

I really appreciated that the book got progressively deeper and the characters more entwined despite it being short stories.

I still don't know what to think about Jon the all knowing dog. My guess is that's kind of the point though.

Within pages, this book captured my head. Both cozy and emotional, any cat lover will appreciate at least something about this book.

The story follows Miyu, Reina, Aoi, Shino, and their cats. Each cat/human duo is told in their own short story with sections told from the humans' perspectives as well as the cats'. The four stories connect wonderfully together. 

‘Slumber and Sky' was my favorite story in the collection though it's perhaps the most emotional. Aoi's grief is presented so vividly. Watching Cookie try to bring her out of her funk was so heartwarming. 

The only thing that would have made this book more enjoyable would have been choosing a different book to read while traveling so I could have had my cats by my side as I read it!