Secrets of the Cat: Its Lore, Legend, and Lives

What is really going on behind thoseluminous feline eyes?

Affectionate yet aloof, intelligentand inquisitive yet dangerouslycareless, the more-or-lessdomesticated house catintrigues us as no other animal can.Now Barbara Holland offers cat loversa fascinating, funny, and refreshinglycandid look at their feline companions:their history, lore, and secrets, and theircomplicated relations with people andwith each other.

Secrets of the Cat is a livelyappreciation of cats as we know andlove them, with witty analysis and freshobservations about felines both high andlow. Here are Winston Churchill’s gingertom, who attended cabinet meetings;Teddy Roosevelt’s cat, Slippers, whocame to dinner; and even the author’sown George II, who was bitten by amouse and adopted by a blue jay. BarbaraHolland’s warm, vivid speculations oncats’ lives and times—on their social,psychic, and mythological legacy, and theirimpenetrable mysteries—will give readersa delightful cat’s-eye view of the world.

Selling 25,000 copies in trade paperback, this delightful compendium of lore, legend and more is now available in mass market. With lively appreciation, Holland offers warm speculations on the social, psychic, and mythological legacy of the creature cherished by so many millions. "Smart, bright, well-written, absorbing."--Smithsonian. (Animals)

"Smart, bright, well-written, absorbing and informative...A book about cats as good as this one is rare."
SMITHSONIAN
A lively appreciation of cats from tip to tail, this witty analysis considers everything we think we know about cats, and offers something new, too. Meet cats in high places such as Winston Churchill's ginger tom, who attended cabinet meetings, and Teddy Roosevelt's cat, Slippers, who came to dinner. Filled with warm, vivid speculations on their lives and times, their social psychic, mythological legacy, and their impenetrable mysteries, this charming book offers a delightful and loving cat's-eye view of the world to be read and cherished by all their human friends.

Smithsonian

“Smart, bright, well-written....A book about cats as good as this one is rare.”

Barbara Holland's books include Secrets of the Cat, Hail to the Chief, and One's Company. Her articles have appeared in Arts and Entertainment, Country Journal, and Smithsonian. She lives in Bluemont, Virginia.