Mewla here.
Do you love reading and love cats too? Every November I share some of the best new fiction and non-fiction cat books for you and yours.
Below find award-winning novels in a variety of genres, gift books for the upcoming holidays, and new books for the children, all involving cats.
BOOKS FOR CHILDREN
TAMIU: A CAT’S TALE
by Angelino Donnachaidh (author) and Fiorella Ikeue (illustrator)
From the publisher: Cats today can be found just about anywhere there are people. But long ago our two species lived completely separate and had no idea each other existed. What was the first encounter like?
Tamiu: A Cat’s Tale is a gorgeously illustrated mythic adventure of discovery and self-discovery for readers young and old.
In an encounter that will shape the future of the entire World Island, Tamiu must decide what she really wants, who she really is, and what world she really belongs to.“
Tamiu: A Cat’s Tale is the winner of the Cat Writers Association’s 2024 MUSE Medallion in Children/Young Adult Books – Written Word-Focused.
Ages 8 and up. Order your copy at https://www.amazon.com/Tamiu-Cats-Tale-Angelino-Donnachaidh-ebook/dp/B0CQCH5GKC
THE CAT WHO CROSSED THE OCEAN: THE TRUE STORY OF AN ORANGE TABBY CAT AND A MULTICULTURAL FAMILY
by Ann Katagiri (author) and Yuriko Hamada (illustrator)
From the Halfierambles’ website: “An English, Japanese, and Chinese Children’s Book you can read in three languages.
Written with the hope of instilling an interest in children towards learning languages and going abroad.
Support local small businesses! These books are proudly printed and bound in Texas, U.S.A. Your book order directly supports 4 different DFW small businesses!”
The Cat Who Crossed the Ocean is the winner of the 2024 MUSE Medallion in Children/Young Adult Books, Illustration Focused from the Cat Writers Association.
ELVIS AND THE WORLD AS IT STANDS
by Lisa Frankel Riddiough (author) and Olivia Chin Mueller (illustrator)
From the publisher: Most shelter animals dream of going home with a forever family. But for Elvis, being chosen by Mrs. Pemberton is a nightmare. He’s been separated from his sister, Etta, and is determined to get back to the shelter to find her. In spite of himself, Elvis becomes curious about 10-year-old Georgina Pemberton, who builds LEGO skyscrapers in her bedroom while navigating her parents’ separation. The longer he’s in his new home, the more he starts recognizing new feelings: admiration for Georgina’s creations, affection for the other pets, and even empathy for the Pembertons—despite their inability to listen.
As Georgina sets out to build her most important skyscrapers yet—the Twin Towers—Elvis realizes that maybe both humans and animals can take a page from Georgina’s Big Book of American Architecture and “build a world of their own choosing,” even if the choices aren’t what they’d initially expected.
Elvis and the World As It Stands is a poignant middle-grade story about loss and finding family from the point of view of a newly adopted kitten from Lisa Frenkel Riddiough with illustrations by Olivia Chin Mueller. Kirkus awarded the book a starred review for outstanding writing. They said:
“Riddiough has lovingly crafted a group of fully realized animal characters—even a fish—as well as three sometimes-mystifying humans, all of whom share their hopes and tribulations and demonstrate that not all happy families look alike. . . This gentle effort will leave engaged readers purring contentedly.” ―Kirkus Reviews
BOOKS FOR ADULTS
FICTION/ COZY MYSTERY FICTION
CRAFTY CAT: THE 11th CRAZY CAT LADY MYSTERY
by Mollie Hunt
From the publisher: Romance, death, and cat quilts.
What does quilting have to do with murder? Lynley Cannon is about to find out.
Lynley Cannon has a new hobby—making cat-themed quilt donations for the ShadowCat Rescue auction. The small quilting guild is run by three generations of women and two cats, but when the elder of the family is murdered, Lynley’s job shifts from crafting to sleuthing. Who would want to kill such a dear old thing? The police think they know, but they don’t have all the facts.
As secrets come out and a romance is uncovered, the quilting project begins to fall to pieces. Lynley jumps in to help the family navigate the justice system, but when a neighbor is found dead and another of the quilt shop’s owners missing, even Lynley is at a loss. It takes a couple of crafty cats to get to the bottom of this stranger-than-fiction crime.
Crafty Cat is hot off the presses, just published this week!
Get your copy at: https://www.amazon.com/Crafty-Cat
FICTION/ 20th CENTURY HISTORICAL FICTION
CAT DREAMING:
From the publisher: In the era of big hair, massive shoulder pads, Reaganomics and Madonna, four newspaper women are desperately seeking success. Maureen, Tina, Elektra, and Sarah bond over their love of newswriting and cats but learn female friendships can be as tricky to navigate as love affairs. When Sarah slips into unconsciousness after an accident, her friends resort to feline subterfuge to wake her from the state they call “cat dreaming.” Cat Dreaming: A Story of Friendships and Second Chances explores the events that brought the friends together and the changes that could pull them apart – unless they accept the faults in each other and in themselves.
Inspired by her years in the trenches of journalism at the Boston Herald, the Stamford Advocate and the Associated Press, author Stephanie Schorow takes readers on a wickedly funny and fantastical romp through the 1980s, seeking to answer the question: Why are women often their own worst enemies?
Cat Dreaming is the winner of the 2024 MUSE Medallion in Fiction from the Cat Writers Association.
Order your copy from: https://www.amazon.com/Cat-Dreaming-Friendships-Second-Chances
MEMOIRS/ HUMAN-CAT BOND
MY ONE-EYED THREE-LEGGED THERAPIST: HOW MY CAT CLIO SAVED ME
by Kathy M. Finley
From the publisher: My One-Eyed, Three-Legged Therapist: How My Cat Clio Saved Me is the story of how an adorable, spunky, gray-and-white kitten helped the author regain the courage to face life’s challenges and realize that none of us is truly alone.
Born into poverty, losing her dad at age seven, and targeted by bullies, Kathy turned to pets for unconditional love and acceptance. A difficult childhood led to an abusive marriage, but things changed on her fortieth birthday when her staff at the organization where she worked gave her an extraordinary cat named Clio. The runt of the litter, a two-time cancer survivor, and a special needs cat, Clio nevertheless had an incredible will to live full tilt. This intrepid feline knew no fear and displayed unlimited self-confidence. She overcame not one, but two, disabilities.
By watching Clio thrive despite what life threw at her, Kathy was able to put her own life in perspective by learning to accept the past, embrace the present, and look forward to the future.
First Place Winner – 2024 PenCraft Book Awards for Animals – Nonfiction genre
First Place Winner – Speak Up Talk Radio 2023 International Firebird Book Award for Animal/Pet Book and Inspirational Book (2 separate awards); and Third Place for Memoir
Finalist – 2024 Feathered Quill Book Award for Adult Animal/Pet Book
Finalist – 2024 American Book Fest for Animals/Pets Nonfiction
My One-Eyed, Three-Legged Therapist is available at https://www.amazon.com/One-Eyed-Three-Legged-Therapist
NONFICTION/ CAT CARE
KITTY LANGUAGE: AN ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO UNDERSTANDING YOUR CAT
by Lili Chin (author & illustrator)
From the publisher: Learn to identify every meow, tail swish, and slow blink in this fun, informative, illustrated guide to feline body language, from the author of Doggie Language….
Packed with playful, vibrant, and informative illustrations, Chin demystifies common behaviors—including sniffing, rubbing, kneading, staring, stalking, and more—so you can help your kitty feel safe, secure, stimulated, and happy. Did you know that the further apart your cat’s ears are, the less relaxed he is feeling? Or that when kitty bumps you with the top of her head, it can be a sign of affection, a request for interaction, or her way of saying, “You are my friend”?
A well-known artist in the animal training and welfare world, Chin creates informational artwork backed by scientific research and vetted by animal behaviorists and veterinarians. From head rubs and tail twitches to eye blinks and ear flicks, Kitty Language is a fun and quick read to help pet parents connect with and appreciate their feline friends.
Kitty Language is the winner of the Cat Writers Association’s 2024 MUSE Medallion in Non-Fiction-General Care.
You’ll find Kitty Language at https://www.amazon.com/Kitty-Language
NONFICTION/ CAT BREEDS
THE CAT’S MEOW: HOW CATS EVOLVED FROM THE SAVANNA TO YOUR SOFA
by Jonathan B. Losos
From the publisher: The domestic cat—your cat—has, from its evolutionary origins in Africa, been transformed in comparatively little time into one of the most successful and diverse species on the planet. Jonathan Losos, writing as both a scientist and a cat lover, explores how researchers today are unraveling the secrets of the cat, past and present, using all the tools of modern technology, from GPS tracking (you’d be amazed where those backyard cats roam) and genomics (what is your so-called Siamese cat . . . really?) to forensic archaeology. In addition to solving the mysteries of your cat’s past, it gives us a cat’s-eye view of today’s habitats, including meeting wild cousins around the world whose habits your sweet house cat sometimes eerily parallels….
In a genial voice, casually deciphering complex science and history with many examples from his own research and multi-cat household, Losos explores how selection, both natural and artificial, over the last several millennia has shaped the contemporary cat, with new breeds vastly different in anatomy and behavior from their ancestral stock.
The Cat’s Meow is the winner of the Cat Writers Association’s 2024 MUSE Medallion in Non-Fiction.
Order your copy from: https://www.amazon.com/Cats-Meow
Would you like to see more award-winning books? Click Here for “Published Books Featuring Cats.”
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Please leave any comments or questions
about this article below.
Great article! Thank you for letting me know about these books. Love your site and especially your reviews.
These look like great cat books. Thanks for the article!
Great post, Mewla! All these books sound fabulous!
Great article and great website. I’ll be back!
Congratulations to the authors on your new books.
Mewla, thanks for letting me know about these cat novels and non-fiction books. I’m putting several on my Christmas list.