The Guest Cat

“For me, Chibi is a friend with whom I share an understanding, and who just happens to have taken on the form of a cat.”

This was very much a Japanese fiction book. There is no plot, exactly, so it's going to be hard for me to say definitively if you'd like this book. It's a slice of life fiction book revolving around a couple who rent a guest house from a wealthy couple. A cat owned by another neighbor further down their alley wanders in from time to time, and the book is, on its surface, about their interactions with the cat and the impact the cat, Chibi, has on their lives. If you dig a bit deeper, the book seems to be more about the ephemeral in your life, things like cicadas, dragonflies, winter, summer, life and death, that sort of thing. Trying to hold onto that which you can't control can hold you back rather than let you progress.

I was prepared to not like this book, particularly after (late book spoilers) Chibi dies. Instead, while I don't think it would make a favorites list of mine, it did make me think a bit. In typical Japanese literature form, the writing is lyrical, beautiful, and conjures up images almost effortlessly. I really, really, really wish I lived in their guesthouse, for instance. I also appreciated (once someone in the reviews here pointed it out) that while the cat, Chibi, is named, our narrator and his wife never are. Neither are any other humans mentioned by name, only by description, or by letter abbreviation. That's a neat touch.

I saw this on the table in Waterstone's and the cover drew my attention. ‘What the heck', I thought, ‘it's only a short book'. So I bought it and read half of it in the queue for the ferry. It's one of those books that I think I'll have to ruminate over for a day or two, but I suspect the beauty of its prose will remain in my mind for days to come. Such a clever little story that's more about setting a mood than revealing a plot. The language is poetic and full of imagery. And I, not even a cat lover, really quite enjoyed it!

I almost gave up, early in. Nothing was happening. No conversations. Little character development. No action.

It continued this way for quite some time. Maybe a third of the book.

And then, finally, everything turned for me. The cat took on significance. The main characters, the man and woman renting the cottage, took on significance. Renting itself took on significance. It all came together into a beautiful, thoughtful novel.

Still, there is no action, so please avoid this book if that's your favorite part of reading. There's no real character development either, so, again, you have been warned. But if you like a story that is inches away from a painting, The Guest Cat is perfect.