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Written by Tricia Brandt
Purr More, Hiss Less
Heavenly Lessons I Learned from My Cat: Book Review
Returning home after a long, hot and humid day with stacks of tests taken by cranky students and dreading a weekend spent marking them, I found this delightful book in my mailbox, inviting me to kick off my shoes, cuddle up with our cat, and delve into its pages. It proved to be just what I needed to regain a sense of inner tranquillity, a kind of Feliway or Rescue Remedy in literary form.
 
Utilizing her astute observations of feline behavior, Allia Zobel Nolan, a Connecticut-based author of over 140 books, with over 2.5 million in print, including 101 Reasons Why a Cat Is Better Than a Man, 202 Reasons Why a Cat Is Better Than a Man, and Women Who Love Cats Too Much, has put together a 224-page collection of lessons our infinitely wise furry companions can teach us. Each mood-lifting adage is accompanied by a fanciful watercolor by Erika Oller guaranteed to elicit more than a few chuckles. This internationally known watercolorist's artwork has graced calendars, millions of greeting cards, as well as books for both adults and children, including The Cabbage Soup Solution, Cats, Cats, Cats! and The Dog Who Sang at the Opera. The author's and artist's collaboration has resulted in a work that is certain to charm ailurophiles everywhere.
Cat lovers will find themselves continuously reminded of the antics and purrsonalities of a feline friend or two. Gems such as "You can never rub up against a person's leg too often", "Fighting takes away from the time you could be chasing butterflies", "You win over more people with a purr than a hiss", and "It's okay to be 'kneedy" perfectly describe my parents' beloved and unforgotten Ginger, a dainty tortoiseshell without an ounce of that legendary "tortitude". Our nine-year-old tuxedo Jamie Cat's philosophies are well summed up with "If at first you don't succeed, take a nap and try again", "If you must walk all over people, do it quickly" (my personal favorite, by the way), "You're better off with a warm lap than a laptop", and "You don't need a corner office; a sunny windowsill should suffice". Our neighborhood catnip addicts, Miezi and Gizmo, who drop by our garden for their daily fix, much to Jamie Cat's dismay, would certainly tell him, "If you must give in to anger, hiss, spit, then get over it", "If someone tries to engage you in a catfight ... walk away", or "You can't hold a grudge and play with a catnip toy".
This a a book to be kept, and taken off the shelf whenever you need a quick pick-me-up, a reminder that those little moments of joy or satisfaction are to be savored, that “Life is precious, even if you have nine of them“, that we should all try to emulate our feline companions more often. The laminated hardcover book with its four-color watercolors is published by Health Communications, Inc.
Click Here to get Purr More, Hiss Less: Heavenly Lessons I Learned from My Cat at Amazon.com
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