Monday, March 22, 2021

Book Review - A Cat's Tale: A Journey Through Feline History, Dr. Paul Koudounaris with Baba The Cat

 




TITLE/AUTHORA Cat's Tale: A Journey Through Feline History; Dr. Paul Koudounaris

PUBLISHER: Henry Holt & Co

YEAR PUBLISHED:  2020

GENRE: Non Fiction 

FORMAT:  PP/LENGTH: 288  pp.

SOURCE: Library

SETTING(s): n/a


ONE SENTENCE SUMMARY:  A book about the history of cat's through the ages, beginning with the pagan gods through modern times.


BRIEF REVIEW:  As a life long cat lover I was sure that this would be a book for me. Although the book is well-researched and full of lovely glossy, colored, costumed photos of one-Baba the Cat, overall, the book did not work well for me.  However, I'm sure many others will disagree and love it.

Personally, I found the book was too detailed. The biggest disappointment for me was that the print was way too tiny and light in color on these glossy pages for my imperfect vision.  This is really too bad as I think this is the type of book best enjoyed in print format not as an eBook. On a whim, I even tried to sample the audio version but found that the stage-like performance and over acting was not to my liking either.  Instead I found myself reading the sections I found most interesting and enjoying the lovely pictures.  I also loved the Afterward: A note from Baba the Cats Human, on how she chose the author when he had his heart set on a silver long-haired tabby.

The Book is broken out intro sections such as:
  • From the Golden Age of Egypt
  • Europe
  • Seafaring Cats Through the Ages
  • Rise of Modern Times
  • A New Beginning: Cats Across America

RATING:  3/5 stars

8 comments:

  1. Too bad, that probably wouldn't work for our Dad's vision either.

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  2. Life-long cat lover here, too. I went through a period when I read a lot of nonfiction about the history of cats. This would have fit right in with my reading at that time. It's too bad that it was a bit of a disappointment for you.

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  3. A history of cats? Oh I should look into that! Thanks for your honest review though. Will take a look and then decide if we want to read it. And then change my mind 10 seconds later again. As cats do....

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  4. Oh I need this! Those pictures had me dying laughing. Okay I just went back and read your thoughts and didn't just get caught up with the pictures. It's too bad it fell a bit flat. This seems like a format and subject better suited to a coffee table book with light detail and amazing cat pictures.

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  5. The pictures alone are worth it. :)

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  6. When I saw the title, I thought it would be perfect for you. Too bad it was a miss.

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  7. Oh dear, when I saw the pics, I immediate thought this would be a perfect gift for two people I know. Not at all sure now.

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  8. Not the book for me, but I can see how some would enjoy it. Too bad it wasn't put together well.

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