- Hardcover: 224 pages
- Publisher: St. Martin's Press (Aug 15 1998)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0312186339
- ISBN-13: 978-0312186333
- Product Dimensions: 23.6 x 15.5 x 2.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 476 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #1,238,680 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
From Library Journal
It is common knowledge that cats have been the familiars of witches and that they possess nine lives. But how many people know that Buddha and Muhammad had beloved feline companions or that throughout the ages cats have been regarded in a positive manner as healers, caretakers, spirit guides, harbingers of good luck, martyrs, and deities who confer fertility on the fields? The Hausmans, authors of The Mythology of Dogs (St. Martin's, 1997) and other books on mythology, spent two decades researching the lore of cats. The result is an entertaining compilation of legends from ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, and Asia; folktales from medieval Europe; and literary references from modern poetry and fiction. Each tale concludes with a description of a specific breed that seems to typify the legend. An extensive bibliography is included. More comprehensive than Robert De Larouche's The Secret Life of Cats (LJ 9/15/95), this book is recommended for public libraries with large folklore or pet collections. (Illustrations not seen.)?Florence Scarinci, Nassau Community Coll. Lib., Garden City, NY
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
There is an invisible danger attached to the Hausmans' paean to cats. It is extremely difficult to sift throuqh the 30 different personalities and almost as many breeds before succumbing to temptation and bringing home a mewing kitten. Other than that, the book is an ailurophile's delight, with literary excerpts and legends to remember. The Cheshire cat (aka British shorthair) evokes Alice in Wonderland memories, while good-luck cats--as exemplified by the Burmese, Chartreux, and Korat--effectively destroy myths of devil affiliations. After a while, the prose occasionally lapses into a sing-song rhythm; all in all, though, a reference for party chatterers, a browser for idle leisure time, and an homage to feline companion animals. Barbara Jacobs
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Most helpful customer reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
felicitous,
This review is from: The Mythology of Cats: Feline Legend and Lore Through the Ages (Hardcover)
an absolutely delightful overview of the wonderful world of feline.This book is written in a very friendly style that starts off as a light read but moves into deeper territory akin to Joseph Campbell. Explores the rich life of cats with highly interesting forays into unexpected realms. While I love this book, I was distracted from time to time by statements that I suppose were misprints, "This cat, though small at around eighteen pounds." I wondered why these were not caught and rectified for later editions. Anyway, the two authors write with much authority, wisdom and respect that renders other books about cats inferior. A great read in many ways!
1.0 out of 5 stars
Not the Cat's Meow,
By jrmspnc (Maryland, USA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Mythology of Cats: Feline Legend and Lore Through the Ages (Hardcover)
I'm a big fan of cats, believing them to be superior in nearly every way that counts to dogs. But a love of cats is not enough to get one through this poorly crafted book. "Poorly crafted" is precisely what I mean. The Hausmans appear unable to decide whether they are relating anecdotes, myths, popular culture, vetrinary science or something else altogether. The narrative tone varies from pedantic to pseudo-scholarly to mind-numblingly pedestrian - sometimes in the same sentence. There is an appalling lack of structure, as well. The Hausmans thought it would be cute to section the book into chapters by cat breeds, but are unable to stick to their own plan. Each chapter itself is supposed to be divided into a "lore" section and a "fact" section, but, again, the division is truer in name than reality. Ultimately, the whole thing reads somewhat like Robert Graves' analysis sections in The Greek Myths without the scholarly impact. I can think of more succinct summary of the book than "lame."
5.0 out of 5 stars
Every cat lover should read this,
This review is from: The Mythology of Cats: Feline Legend and Lore Through the Ages (Hardcover)
Select whatever cat you love in this book to read such interesting details of the personality and legends about your cat. Contains very accurate references to other cat literature and famous cat people. You will want to read these books too. There are fascinating and entertaining stories which will provoke you to read further into the "Mythology of Cats" about other cat types of your acquaintance. You will associate cats in your life with so many of the characteristics described.
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