Monday, January 11, 2010

Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T. S. Eliot

About the book: These playful verses by a celebrated poet have delighted readers and cat lovers around the world ever since they were gathered for publication in 1939. As Valerie Eliot has pointed out, there are a number of references to cats in T.S. Eliot's work, but it was to his godchildren, Tom Faber and Alison Tandy, in the 1930s that he first revealed himself at "Old Possum" and for whom he composed these poems.

Quote:
The Rum Tum is a terrible bore:
When you let him in, then he wants to be out
He's always on the wrong side of every door



Why this book you might ask: I've owned this book for many years and have enjoyed it greatly. It was just time to read it again.

My thoughts: These poems are a lot of fun to read. They are humorous, playful, and at times insightful. If you ever owned a cat you might recognize him/her in the Rum Tum Tugger. I've had cats who were always on the wrong side of the door. My white cat is named for one of the cats in here: Jennyanydots. The poems vary in rhythm and rhyme, each one a unique work that works well with the others in the book. It's amazing to me that the play Cats was based on this little volumn. I recommend it highly, whether or not you like cats.

Links:
Preview here

Hardcover: 46 pages
Publisher: Harcourt, Brace and Co. (January 1, 1939)
ASIN: B000SSNKV0

Challenges:
100+ Reading Challenge
Cat Book Challenge
Monthly Mixer Mele
Flashback Challenge

Pages read in 2010:
This book - 46
total - 1056

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

What a neat sounding book!