Tag: Cats

Medieval Cats: Claws, Paws, and Kitties of Lore by Catherine Nappington (Review)

Medieval Cats: Claws, Paws, and Kitties of Lore by Catherine Nappington

Bookshop.org | Waterstones | WH Smith

Blurb

A hilarious celebration of cats in artwork from medieval times

From the year 500 to 1500 numerous medieval manuscripts and works of art portrayed cats as lazy, selfish, and vicious. Centuries later, these masterpieces live on, shining a bright light on the dark age of cats and telling a brand-new story of their glory. Medieval Cats celebrates more than two hundred cats who are up to no good.

Also included are cat facts from the Middle Ages as well as poems and excerpts from literature where cats were mentioned. Both a humorous book and a peek into medieval art and literature, Medieval Cats will appeal to cat and art lovers everywhere.

Review

My husband had this fun little book as a Christmas present so as soon as he had read it I knew I had to read it as well. 

I read this book in one sitting because there are a lot of pictures but there are also some very interesting facts about cats. Some of these facts are quite gruesome so this book isn’t for the faint hearted. I didn’t realise just how cruel people could be to cats between year 500 and 1500. 

However, it wasn’t all doom and gloom. There were also some very humorous facts about cats. The chosen manuscripts to feature were also excellent and very amusing. Monks had a real love for cats and managed to slip a cat picture into their manuscripts in very cunning ways. 

This is a fun little book that is perfect for the coffee table and one that you can always dip into for some beautiful cat pictures and some fun facts. I give this book 4 out of 5 Dragons. 

🐲🐲🐲🐲

Etsy

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Lyra’s Pawsome Books #15

Hello!

I thought it was time for an Etsy update because I have been quite busy recently adding new products. I love my little shop and one of my aims for 2025 is to really build it up and add more products.

I love making new bookmarks for the shop but I must admit I do end up wanting them all for myself and have to resist because I will end up with way too many. I am like a magpie for shiny pretty bookmarks!

Here are the bookmarks I have added recently:

Knitting Bookmarks

My sister who does a lot of knitting instantly bagged herself one of these bookmarks but I still have 9 left.

Cards

I have made a few new cards recently and I have also added the Easter Cards back to the shop which are usually quite popular.

Cat Card

I now have two Cat themed cards on the Etsy because cats are proving very popular.

Cake Card

The Cake Cards have just landed in the shop over the last few days. I have made a few for private orders so I thought I would add them to my Etsy shop.

TBR Prompts

I have also done my first digital download in the shop which is TBR Prompts that you just download, print off and cut out all from your home. They are also currently on offer!

I am always struggling to work out what to read next so I came up with the prompts to help myself and decided to add them to my shop as well. I also still have the very popular book shaped TBR Tickets available in the shop.

I have quite a few ideas for new bookmarks bobbing around in my head so I hope to share those with you soon.

Thank you for stopping by and having a little browse of my shop!

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

This and That Thursday

Hello!

I thought it was time for a post about the things that haven’t involved books. I am back to work fully from Monday so the reading and adventures might slow down but I’m hoping not too much. Work on the house continues and this week has involved a lot of noise from the builders which has been rather distracting. We really hope the end is in sight as we would love to see the house all finished and no longer covered in scaffolding.

Decorating

Whilst the builders have been working on the outside of the house we have been busy trying to get work moving on the library. I have done more wall paper removing this week and I hope to get that finished this week. There is a very long way to go with this room before it becomes a library but maybe if we are lucky we can get it done before Christmas.

Afternoon Tea

We took my parents for afternoon tea at Stanbrook Abbey the other day and the food was fantastic. I do love an afternoon tea especially when they have a great choice of teas to choose from which this one did.

Recital

My husband and myself have been busy working on a recital over the summer and finally we did the recital last weekend. It went really well and the treble recorder and organ combo sounded fab. Here is a little snippet.

Cat Cafe

Husband had a voucher to go to Paws Cafe in Shrewsbury for his birthday so we went last week and it was brilliant. We have never done a cat cafe before but we will definitely be going back. We both fell in love with the Maine Coon there called Darwin. Lady Grey was also an absolute cutie and loved having cuddles. I’m definitely considering getting a Maine Coon one day.

Happy Reading!

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Reading My Height in Books #4

Hello!

It is awkward photo time! April was a better reading month for me than March and I also managed to read one big book so I’m really hoping that will help make up for the lack of height during March.

Here is the current book stack which contains 21 books.

I managed to get Lyra to participate this month for the photo. This meant being very stealthy and swooping her up before she knew it was cuddly photo time.

The book stack is now the height of 21 inches exactly. This means I have 46 inches to go. Happily I am still ahead of this time last year but only by 2.5 inches. I must keep pushing with my reading as I really don’t want to fail again.

Look at that book stack grow.

Hopefully Lyra will appear in more photos soon but she can be a very reluctant photo model sometimes.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

First Lines Friday: 23/09/2022

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has had a good week so far. I thought it was high time I took part in First Lines Friday again. As usual the answer is below the cat pictures.

I went to the dance with Thomas Toofat. It’s Toogood really, but he is too fat, with frizzy hair and flat feet. We never meant to let him know we call him that, but the week before, at the Turners’ picnic, Sally said without thinking, ‘And this is Thomas Toofat…’ Oh, it was utterly withering.

Get guessing

Midsummer Night in the Workhouse by Diana Athill

“I can remember in detail being hit by my first story one January morning in 1958.” So begins literary legend Diana Athill in the preface to Midsummer Night in the Workhouse, a long-overdue collection of her short fiction, originally published in the 1950s to the 1970s.

In unsentimental though often touching prose, Athill’s young women anticipate, enjoy, or just miss out on brief sexual encounters with men met on trains, at parties — just about anywhere they can. A cheating wife, back with her boring husband, is wracked with agonizing love for the unavailable partner of her brief fling; a writer seeks inspiration at a writers’ retreat whilst avoiding the group seducer’s invitation; a wife’s party flirtations propel her possessive husband into another woman’s bed; two fun-loving women face a sinister sexual assault during a Greek holiday; a teenager experiences enraptured detachment during her first kiss.

Beautifully written, perceptive, touching, and funny, Midsummer Night in the Workhouse is Diana Athill at her best.

Did anybody guess correctly?

Please drop me a comment with your First Line Friday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

Etsy

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Mid Week Quote: Neil Gaiman

Hello!

I hope everyone is having a good week so far. I’m not getting much reading done at the moment which is shame but I’m hoping that will improve soon.

My chosen quote this week is about cats. When I saw it I thought it was perfect because I can’t get Lyra our calico to behave at all.

“I would like to see anyone, prophet, king or God, convince a thousand cats to do the same thing at the same time.” 

Neil Gaiman

Happy Reading

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Star Trek Discovery: The Book of Grudge by Robb Pearlman (Review)

Star Trek Discovery: The Book of Grudge by Robb Pearlman

Blurb

New York Times bestselling author Robb Pearlman focuses on STAR TREK: DISCOVERY’s breakout star, Grudge the cat. Full of cat photos and whimsical illustrations!

Sharper than a claw and more stunning than a phaser blast, The Book of Grudge’s Prime Directive features her take on everything from space travel to the proper care and training of an array of alien species, STAR TREK-inspired quotes, and haiku meditations on Grudge’s most favourite things, including napping and people (as long as they’re far enough away).

Make no mistake, Cleveland Booker’s massive – and massively cool – cat, Grudge is no mundane mouser. This taciturn tabby is, in fact, “a Queen.” She knows it, and everyone aboard the Discovery knows it, too… though some realise it just a bit too late!

Review

This book was my cat’s chosen Christmas present for my husband but sadly it did not arrive till late January. It was ok though as the cat got my husband another present and my husband ended up with an extra present. This also meant I had to be patient and wait for my husband to read it first. Thankfully this little book was worth the wait. 

Grudge was a firm favourite of mine whilst watching Star Trek Discovery and I must admit I had hoped to have seen more of her on screen. You can imagine my excitement when I heard she had a book! 

The book is made up of photos and illustrations of Grudge on her own and with members of the crew of Discovery and most importantly Grudge’s views and opinions which have kindly been written down by Robb Pearlman.  Grudge gives her opinions on certain members of the Discovery drew, space travel, alien species and much more. Grudge has even composed little haikus for us. 

This wonderful little book is funny and shows Grudge to be the true Queen that she is. It takes less than twenty minutes to read but is totally worth it. I highly recommend this book to all cat lovers and Star Trek fans and give this book a massive 5 out of 5 Dragons. I end my review with a quote from Grudge “Cat’ plah!!!”

🐲🐲🐲🐲🐲

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About the author

Robb Pearlman is a pop culturalist and a #1 New York Times bestselling author of more than 35 books for grown-ups and kids.

Grudge is the feline companion of Cleveland Booker and a Queen among cats.

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

Friday Poetry: T. S. Eliot

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has some good plans for the weekend.

My chosen poem for the week is from an old favourite. Old Possum’s Book of Practical Cats is probably my all time favourite book of poetry, so I have chosen to share The Naming of Cats.

The Naming of Cats

The Naming of Cats is a difficult matter, 
It isn't just one of your games;
You may think at first I'm as mad as a hatter
When I tell you, a cat must have THREE DIFFERENT NAMES. 
First of all, there's the name that the family use daily, 
Such as Peter, Augustus, Alonzo or James,
Such as Victor or Jonathan, George or Bill Bailey - 
All of them sensible everyday names.
There are fancier names if you think they sound sweeter, 
Some for the gentlemen, some for the dames:
Such as plato, Admetus, Electra, Demeter - 
But all of them sensible everyday names.
But I tell you, a cat needs a name that's particular,
A name that's peculiar, and more dignified,
Else how can he keep up his tail perpendicular,
Or spread out his whiskers, or cherish his pride?
Of names of this kind, I can give you a quorum,
Such as Munkustrap, Quaxo, or Coricopat,
Such as Bombalurina, or else Jellylorum - 
Names that never belong to more than one cat. 
But above and beyond there's still one name left over,
And that is the name that you never will guess;
The name that no human research can discover -
But THE CAT HIMSELF KNOWS, and will never confess.
When you notice a cat in profound meditation, 
The reason, I tell you, is always the same:
His mind is enraged in rapt contemplation
Of the moment, of the thought, of the thought of his name:
His ineffable effable
Effanineffable
Deep and inscrutable singular Name.

T. S. Eliot

Happy Reading

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

First Lines Friday: 28/05/2021

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

Hello!

I haven’t done one of these for ages so I thought it was high time I took part again.

So here are the opening lines of the book. Remember the answer is below the cats.

No mortal alive had ever seen a Spindle.

Echoes of them lingered, in places remembered or forgotten, in people touched by magic, in creatures descendant of other realms. But no Spindle had burned in an age. The last of them was a thousand years gone. The passages closed, the gates locked. The age of crossing ended.

Get guessing!

Have you guessed the answer?

And the answer is???

A strange darkness grows in Allward.

Even Corayne an-Amarat can feel it, tucked away in her small town at the edge of the sea.

She soon discovers the truth: She is the last of an ancient lineage—and the last hope to save the world from destruction. But she won’t be alone. Even as darkness falls, she is joined by a band of unlikely companions:

A squire, forced to choose between home and honor.
An immortal, avenging a broken promise.
An assassin, exiled and bloodthirsty.
An ancient sorceress, whose riddles hide an eerie foresight.
A forger with a secret past.
A bounty hunter with a score to settle.

Together they stand against a vicious opponent, invincible and determined to burn all kingdoms to ash, and an army unlike anything the realm has ever witnessed.

Please drop me a comment with your First Lines Friday and will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading.

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you

First Line Friday: 23/04/2021

First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?

  • Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
  • Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
  • Finally… reveal the book!

Happy Friday!

I hope everyone has had a good week so far. I thought I would join in with First Line Friday this week as I do enjoy guessing other people’s First Line Fridays. As usual the answer is below the cats!

I believe that a well-known anecdote exists to the effect that a young writer, determined to make the commencement of his story forcible and original enough to catch and rivet the attention of the most blase of editors, penned the following sentence:

‘”Hell!” said the Duchess.’

Strangely enough, this tale of mine opens in much the same fashion. Only the lady who gave utterance to the exclamation was not a duchess.

Get Guessing!

Any idea?

and the answer is…

The Murder on the Links by Agatha Christie

Belgian detective Hercule Poirot is summoned to France after receiving a distressing letter with an urgent cry for help. Upon his arrival in Merlinville-sur-Mer, the investigator finds the man who penned the letter, the South American millionaire Monsieur Renauld, stabbed to death and his body flung into a freshly-dug, open grave on the golf course adjoining the property. Meanwhile the millionaire’s wife is found bound and gagged in her room. Apparently, it seems that Renauld and his wife were victims of a failed break-in, resulting in Renauld’s kidnapping and death.

There’s no lack of suspects: his wife, whose dagger served as the weapon, his embittered son, who would have killed for independence, and his mistress who refused to be ignored. Each felt deserving of the dead man’s fortune. The police think they’ve found the culprit. But Poirot has his doubts. Why is the dead man wearing an overcoat that is too big for him? And who was the impassioned love-letter in the coat pocket for? Before Poirot can answer these questions, the case is turned upside down by the discovery of a second, identically-murdered corpse.

Did anybody guess correctly?

Please drop me a comment with your First Line Friday and I will head over for a visit.

Happy Reading

If you enjoy reading my blog and would like to make a donation I would be very grateful. Thank you