Customer Reviews

Homer's Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned about Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat

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There are a lot of stories about animals, both fact and fiction, and their immense popularity is consistent: they are mostly heartwarming and sentimental, and remind us of what our "best selves" can accomplish. Gwen Cooper's story, of the 12 year journey shared with Homer, an abandoned kitten rendered blind by life-saving surgery, stands out, for approach and style. Cooper is a born storyteller with a deep appreciation for the whole history of storytelling and a keen sense of detail, so that Homer is named for the blind poet of the Odyssey, the great epic story of adventure and homecoming, and passages from that epic introduce each chapter. And Homer's tale is vividly, broadly referential: he is also Daredevil, the blind Marvel superhero and the Man Without Fear. The pathos of his situation quickly gives way to consistent emphasis on his strengths: his courage (he foils a burglar, and leaps tall bookcases in a single bound), his keen senses (he detects tuna and turkey even from great distances, and through firm packaging), his consistent friendliness and "good attitude" (most people would envy Homer's ability to make friends and influence people), and his consistent fierce devotion to Gwen. And yet the story is really as much Gwen's odyssey, and this is a witty, strikingly observant tale of becoming an adult at the turn of the 21st century; as the old certainty about rites of passage breaks down, and education doesn't guarantee a job for life, and numerous failed relationships precede finding the right one, maybe being an adult doesn't mean finding a job or buying a house or getting married and having children but more, as Gwen concludes, taking on responsibility for someone other than yourself. The story follows Gwen, Homer, and the two cats she already had, Scarlett and Vashti, from Miami on a "leap of faith" excursion to New York to look for work; in fact, this story shatters so many of the cliches about single ladies who have multiple cats (though its author does express her fears about becoming those cliches): Gwen Cooper is outgoing, ambitious, well connected to the world around her. She is unafraid to enlist a little help from her friends (even to transport three cats via air in the cabin); she is a generous, shrewd, smart "people person" as much as she is a "cat lady", and her dissection of the dating scene is something many readers will wish they'd read a long time ago. By the time she meets Laurence and eventually marries him, you feel not so much that she's been swept off her feet as that she's found someone whose standards are hers. Years ago, I asked an advanced composition course if there were any universal qualities of "good writing": my students identified clarity and wit. Homer's Odyssey has both. The precision of detail brings everything to vivid life: cats and people, all are real. You're right there with them, on the Pussy Galore Tour through frustratingly designed highways and airport terminals. You follow Gwen through the ashen streets of Manhattan after 9/11, and hear both the silence and the sound of a thousand fire truck sirens. And at the very beginning, as impossibly tiny Homer puts his paws between the cables of Gwen's sweater, you realize that each has imprinted on the other, that the journey is beginning, and by the end, you realize it is ongoing, that there are still adventures to be pursued.

I was deeply touched by that story. Thanks to Mrs. Cooper for writing it. I share her opinion saying that taking care of a blind cat can be very rewarding.

This was a great cat story...never maudlin, sometimes suspenseful, always inspiring. I appreciate animal stories that start with the bad stuff but end on a positive note. There's a nice romance for the author included too. And a first person account of being caught near the twin towers in Manhatten on the day they were destroyed -- very graphic, very scary. All in all the book was very well written, with likable characters and an amazing little cat.

True story of a small, black cat who is totally blind but has such a highly developed sense of smell that he can leap in the air and catch flies. Would make a delightful movie.

Usually I am happy to review a book using my own words. In this case, however, Gisele Baxter's user review is absolutely perfect. She has said what I would say if I was a writer!

This is an incredible, amazing book. At times you will laugh out loud, at others make sure you have a hankie handy.

I read this as a library book, but it will be a definite addition to my home library. Thank you, Gwen Cooper, for writing this book!

I enjoyed this book so much that I ordered a second copy for my Mom who is also a cat lover.