Reader’s Purr-spectives
See how readers have responded to the charm and curiosity of Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them. Leave your review here.
For me, the supreme achievement of this book lies in the lightness with which the author wears her erudition. Susannah Fullerton manages to combine her passion for cats and her encyclopaedic literary scholarship effortlessly in her discussion of authors who have found the companionship of a cat to be ‘a relief, a comfort and an inspiration’. Her tone is unfailingly conversational, easy on the ear and the eye; but in each of the seventeen chapters which features a great writer, she blends information in the form of social history, literary history, biographical detail and anecdotal records with wit and a wry sense of humour, to counteract any sense that this is information for the sake of information.” ― Dr Ruth Wilson, Patron, Jane Austen Society of Australia (see full review)
It is such fun to find out how besotted with their feline friends all these writers were. The names and characters of some of the cats are hilarious, and it is so interesting to see how important the relationships were for so many people. (There must have been a lot of muttering from some of the servants who had to tidy/clean up after some of the more pampered pusses.) The Mark Twain piece had me in fits with his names and nonsense, and I was reminded yet again how sad Edward Lear’s loneliness was. (Thank goodness for Foss!)
It was flattering to find myself invited to be part of this illustrious lineup so thank you for inviting my family cats and me to join the fun!” ― Dame Lynley Dodd (see full review)
This is absolutely delightful prose and neither thin and frivolous nor worthy and fastidious. It’s just a really well-crafted read that draws on great cats associated with big writers … Except, and every cat owner will relate, everything is styled the other way round, the cat owning the human rather than the human owning the cat, all of them characters, muses, displaying what Boswell called their ‘contemptuous knowledge’.” ― Richard Lofthouse Off the Shelf, University of Oxford Alumni (see full review)
I loved the book, not surprised it has sold out. Having been to a lot of Susannah’s lectures over the years, love her writing style! I could ‘hear’ her speaking as I read the book.” ― Christine, via email
Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them is an absolute delight from start to finish. Each chapter offers a witty and engaging glimpse into the life of a famous author and their feline companion. I found myself thoroughly charmed by the anecdotes and literary connections throughout. The stories are not only amusing but also expertly researched, revealing how cats influenced each author’s daily life and sometimes even their writing.
I loved every page. It’s the kind of book you can dip into for a quick smile or read right through in one sitting, like I did, for a thoroughly enjoyable cat-filled journey.” ― Cheryl via Goodreads (see full review)
‘Every good writer, it seems, needs a mews.’ This playful premise introduces Susannah Fullerton’s charming chronicle featuring a colourful cast of feline characters and the literary greats they ‘condescended to live with’. … Published by the Bodleian Library, this well-referenced and engaging read will delight cat lovers and bibliophiles alike. Many of the feline-inspired works by the featured authors can be found in the State Library’s cat-alogue, while our resident Library cat – Matthew Flinder’s intrepid Trim – keeps watch from his window ledge outside the Mitchell Library, and enduring reminder that cats and literature belong together.” ― Zoe Melling, State Library NSW (see full review)
When I finished reading your new book I was sad to have none left to enjoy. I galloped through it in three days, thoroughly absorbed, and would have continued to read more happily. As someone who is very much part of the target audience, it will be no surprise to know how much it delighted me. It strikes exactly the right note with the choice of writers and their feline muses.” ― Ruth (see full review)
Think of an author you love and there’s probably a chapter here about the ‘cat who owned them’. There’s Mysouff I ‘who permitted Alexandre Dumas to escort him home,’ Bob, the deaf kitten, ‘who helped Charles Dickens open letters,’ and Nelson who was ‘Chief Mouser to Sir Winston Churchill’.
There’s also the story of Ernest and Mary Hemingway who apparently had 54 cats in their home. Astonishingly ‘Hemingway could identify and name each one,’ Fullerton writes. Each little chapter is a joy.” ― Dr Diana Carroll via Arts Hub (see full review)
As a devoted cat lover and literary enthusiast, I devoured Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them with the same delight as a cat savouring a sunbeam. Susannah Fullerton’s charming ode to the feline muses of literary giants is a purr-fect blend of biography, whimsy, and heartwarming anecdotes—a testament to how cats have quietly (and sometimes imperiously) shaped the world of letters.” ― Sarah via Goodreads (see full review)
Oh yes, when you pick up a book that is beautifully bound and feels like a gift in your hands (even with a marker ribbon!) you can pretty much guarantee that you are going to love the contents. After all, it is already screaming quality.
Famous writers and cats – and word play. It really doesn’t get much better than that. I read this over about four nights. While it is only around 250 pages, the text is quite small so there’s a lot packed in here. But it is precisely the kind of book that you can also dip in and out of, as the moment takes you.
Each chapter deals with a different author and their cat, or in several cases, cats plural. Beginning with Dr Samuel Johnson in the 1700s and Hodge … ― Sue W. (see full review)
I just loved this beautiful book published by the Bodleian Library. Not only is it a physically beautiful book with its delicate line drawings, gold bookmark, paw printed end pages, and gold embossed cat on the spine, but it is also beautifully written and lovingly researched.
The book is based around ‘the happy conjunction between authors and felines’. Susannah Fullerton writes enchantingly about seventeen great writers and the cats who owned them, including Mark Twain owned by Bambino, LM Montgomery owned by Daffy, and Dame Lynley Dodd owned by Wooskit who became the very famous Slinky Malinky.
Each chapter describes the intimate connection between the Cats and their Writers – how cats can inspire, soothe, and love their slaves. It is an utterly delightful read from start to finish and an absolute must for readers and cat lovers alike.” ― Gabrielle via Goodreads
I wasn’t aware that Dorothy L. Sayers rescued her kitten, Blitz, from the wreckage of a bomb site. Nor did I know that Daffy III—the most supportive of companions—sat on Lucy Maud Montgomery’s lap as she penned the first drafts of Anne of Green Gables. These and other stories can be found in Susannah Fullerton’s Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them. Fullerton brings a charming humanity to her portraits of rarefied figures like Alexandre Dumas and Mark Twain by describing not only their literary accomplishments, but also the cats who kept them company. Witty anecdotes, biographical details, an abundance of cats, and the occasional ink drawing make for a charming read. After all, aren’t we all just visitors in the worlds our pets inhabit?” —ER, The New Criterion.
For either a cat-lover, or a lover of literacy, this is the book you didn’t realise you needed. With small anecdotes about some of society’s most recognisable names, this information you gather is only really useful if you’re either in discussion with like-minded individuals, or taking part in a particularly challenging quiz. But in a way that’s the beauty of it.
Overall however, this book makes the purr-fect gift for lovers of both cats and literacy alike. It makes you realise that the bond you feel with your own cats if felt regardless of who you are, or your impact on society. And also brings to light how significant of an impact a cat will have on your life.” ― Your Cat (see full review)
A lovely, thoughtful and interesting book. I normally never read non-fiction, but this was so engaging and cozy. The only way this would be a better reading experience is if I had a kitten curled up next to me as I read it!” ― Lara, via Goodreads (see full review)
Congratulations, Susannah, on your new book. My mum gave me a copy of it and a tea-towel for Christmas and Dexter, my cat, heartily approves.” ― Elizabeth (via social media)
Cats have inspired everyone from Ancient Egyptians to the literary lights of the Western canon – and a new book about writers and their cats honours this feline influence.
Billed by its publisher as “a fun, charming romp through the history of seventeen great writers and the cats who captured their hearts”, the book is indeed fun and charming, but it is also witty, moving, insightful and deeply resonant for those who love cats and words, be it as either a reader or a writer.” ― Heidi Maier, InReview (see full review)
In Susannah Fullerton’s creative biographical collection, seventeen cats are vehicles for stories of the authors who cared for them.
“Since cats were first domesticated and since human beings first began to write,” the book notes, “there has been a happy conjunction between authors and felines.” The biographies included here bear that out, with titles like “Selma, whose death was memorialized for Horace Walpole” and “Bambino, whose slave was Mark Twain.” While each story has a cat as its entry point, the chapters discuss the authors’ lives with pets in general terms, including when cats pop up in their work.
Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them is a sweet and enlightening biographical collection.” ― Jeff Fleischer Forward Reviews (see full review)
Whoever knew that so many famous writers shared their lives with a ‘significant other’, namely an idiosyncratic cat! It was a delight to read of these felines, along with their writers. My favourite was the oyster-eating Hodge. Having seen his statue in Gough Square outside Samuel Johnson’s house, it was fascinating to learn more of his background. Equally enjoyable are the ‘Paws for Thought’ titbits at the end of each chapter with more feline facts and fancies. A ‘purrfect’ read.” ― Anne, via email
Who could resist such a wonderful title as Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them! The author suggests that cats and writers have bonded together for comfort, companionship, inspiration and possibly warmth, for many generations. She has also included fun features showing cats in libraries, bookshops and hotels. Some of the authors mentioned here are Horace Walpole, Alexander Dumas, Charles Dickens, Mark Twain and Doris Lessing.
Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them begins with a story set in the ninth century when an Irish Monk neglected his work of writing Holy Words and instead wrote a poem to his beloved white cat. Susannah then goes on to describe the qualities which make cats such special animals. She notes that they are soft, provide an alarm clock for feeding, and are intelligent and inscrutable, but wrapped in a soft package. “Dame Edith Sitwell prized the fact that her cats never said anything foolish.” ” ― Grasshopper2 Blue Wolf Reviews (see full review)
Cats have been renowned as independent and secret creatures, while also providing comfort and loyalty to the writer. Fullerton was very clever in how she presented each of the authors and their connections to cats in their lives, with a certain reverence for both beings. These stories were more than just anecdotes; they were a deeper dive into how the bond between human writer and cat influenced literary history.” ― Marles via Goodreads (see full review)
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