LOST CAT

Wendy and Caroline

No, neither of my cats is missing (whew).  The post title refers to Lost Cat ~ A True Story of Love, Desperation, and GPS Technology, a book I finished a few days ago, and cannot recommend highly enough.  It was a quick read, but perhaps that is because I could not put it down.  Anyone whose attachment to her/his pet approaches the symbiosis between parent and child will read Caroline Paul's book (illustrated by Wendy MacNaughton) with an easy, instant identification.  I smiled, I wept, I nodded in empathy as the tale unfolded.

I won't be giving anything away by quoting from the book liner ~

"Caroline Paul was recovering from an accident and thought things couldn't get worse.  But then her beloved cat Tibia disappeared.  She and her partner, Wendy MacNaughton, mourned his loss, but weeks later, Tibia waltzed back into their lives.  His owners were overjoyed.  But they were also ... jealous.  Their shy, anxious cat had become a swashbuckling adventurer.  Where had he gone?  And, more important, did he love someone else more?  Caroline and Wendy were determined to find out.

"Using GPS technology, cat cameras, psychics, pet detectives, and animal communicators, the authors of Lost Cat embarked on a quest to discover what their cat did when they weren't around.  Told through writer Caroline Paul's rich and warmly poignant narrative and illustrator Wendy MacNaughton's playful and astute four-color illustrations, Lost Cat is a book for animal lovers, pet owners, and anyone who has ever done anything desperate for love."

Over the years I've been owned by one horse, three parakeets, six dogs, and nine cats.  The closer the bond, the more intense the confusion and pain when one dies or disappears.  But this is not a maudlin book.  It brims with wit and charm, and illuminates the best in us.