Adina (notifications back, log out, clear cache) 's Reviews > The Travelling Cat Chronicles

I decided to read this small novel because I recently adopted a lovely kitten and the blurb promised a “tender feel-good story of a man's journey around Japan with a streetcat. ” As I feel nothing but love for my fur ball, I thought this was going to be the perfect companion for the moments Arya decides to sleep in my lap and I have to keep still 2 hours so I do not disturb the princess. It started as promised, a funny story from the cat’s perspective but then it became a bitter-sweet account of friendship, loss and love. And the ending, well, it broke my heart in million tiny pieces. I read the last pages on the plane and I was pretending to look out of the window so the other passengers would not see the tears streaming down my face. I probably should have expected this since the writer is Japanese and I am yet to read an entirely joyful novel coming from that country.

The novel starts in the mind of a successfully stray male cat that starts to accept food from a kind-hearted stranger. After he is badly injured by a car, he is taken in by the cat-lover and soon becomes a beloved pet to Satoru Miyawaki. They become increasingly attached with one another and it comes as a surprise when Satoru begins to search for someone to adopt the cat, now named Nana, because he was unable to keep her any longer. The 2 companions embark on a trip along the Japanese islands (unsuccessfully) searching for the perfect human replacement. It becomes the perfect pretext to visit old friends from Satoru’s past and re-live important moments from his childhood.

Nana’s voice is exactly as I imagine a cat talk. Ironic, witty, straight forward, overconfident and reluctant to fully admit its feelings of love for his human companion. The cat’s nuggets of wisdom are mingled with a 3rd person account of the trip and the recollection of Satoru’s relationship history with each person they visit.

Although in the beginning the prose feels very simple and naive, it soon becomes clear that it is a bit more than a feel-good story about a cat and her master. It was sweet, endearing and sad as I learned more about Satoru’s childhood and I started to guess the reason he had to abnadon his dear furry friend.

Although they were a tear jerker, I still loved Satoru and Nana’s adventures and I warmly recommend this novel to anyone with a heart and love for animals.

I thank Netgalley, Hiro Arikawa and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for providing me with a copy in exchange for my honest review.

P.S. Here’s a pic with my little one.