Seven Cats I Have Loved

pan

Never has a book confounded my expectations more than this one. Far from being a heartwarming read of life spent in feline companionship, Levit chooses to focus almost entirely on her cats' ill-health and deaths, frequently caused by her own neglect, willful ignoring of veterinary advice, and lack of attention to clear signs of their distress.
Anthropomorphising pets is a natural human inclination, which can, I think, enrich the lives of both ⬇️

Bookwomble ... pet and owner, but Levit appears to project herself so fully onto her cats that they serve as proxies to her own needs, and at times of crisis in their lives she seems unable to distinguish her self-interest from their care needs.

I feel rather upset after reading this book, and undoubtedly my review reflects this. (edited) 3mo

Soubhiville Oh no! Hopefully your review will help others know what the book actually is. 3mo

Aimeesue Oh dear. Thanks for the warning! How distressing. 3mo

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Bookwormjillk Oh no! Sorry you had to take one for the team. I will definitely steer clear of this one. 3mo

Bookwomble @Soubhiville @Aimeesue @Bookwormjillk Normally, I'd put this in the charity shop donation pile, but I can't bring myself to inflict it on another unsuspecting cat-lover so, unusually, I've put it in the recycling bin so that it can be pulped! In fairness, I should say it has quite a few 5-star reviews on GR, where its average rating is 3.53, which bemuses me. There's no accounting for individual taste, I guess 🤷‍♂️ 3mo

bibliothecarivs 😬 3mo

Ruthiella Oof! Those poor cats! 😢 3mo

Bookwomble @Ruthiella Well, it's clear that she did love them and did feed and shelter them, but bizarrely chose to write a book about their illnesses, deaths and the ways in which she didn't look after them properly. An early section has her conflicted feelings about loving her cats more than her two pre-teen daughters🤦‍♂️ 3mo

LeahBergen Oh, yikes! 😬 3mo

quietlycuriouskate God, what a downer! 😿 3mo

Bookwomble @quietlycuriouskate It was, annoyingly so, as I picked it expecting to be uplifted. 3mo

TieDyeDude Oof, sounds like an ugly downer of a book. I'd be interested to hear how a positive reviewer looks past all that... 3mo

Bookwomble @TieDyeDude By finding it, "endearing, touching and very, very relatable," apparently! ?‍♂️ Seems like red flags to me! ? 3mo

TieDyeDude Relatable? Poor cats. Maybe the ASPCA can track down those reviews for animal welfare checks... 🙄 3mo

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