The Travelling Cat Chronicles

This was my favorite read of 2022. It is a gentle, bittersweet read that manages to be sad and inspiring at the same time. I absolutely loved this story as it unfolded and revealed the great love of one man for his friends and one cat for this man.

I listened to the audiobook narrated by George Blagden whose nuanced reading really enhanced the text of the book. I particularly enjoyed the snark he added to the cat's voice. It was perfect.  I particularly loved this line from the cat: “Humans who think we don't understand them are the stupid ones.”

This book is the story of a journey, both physical and emotional. It is filled with humor, wonder, and beauty. As the cat says of the journey: “At that moment, we were without doubt the greatest travellers in the world. And I was the world's greatest travelling cat.” 

This book is something that you should not miss if you've ever been loved by a cat. Perhaps even if you haven't.

I only read this because my bookclub was reading it. It wasn't even on my radar. But I love cats so I thought I'd give it a try. I absolutely LOVED it. I love how you get the cats thoughts and having owned cats I can see it. It's just a beautiful story of a man who takes in a stray. It is beautifully translated and flowed so nicely. Just have some tissues towards the end of the story when you realize Satoru is not going to make it. I cried so hard when Nana was crying in the courtyard for Satoru. .

I am dedicating this review to our bookclub member who has just passed away recently. Jenny Colvin aka Reading Envy.

Our silver van was like a magic carriage. Every time I got into it, it carried me to a place I'd never been before. At the moment, we were without a doubt the greatest travelers in the world. And I was the world's greatest travelling cat.

I don't really know how to write this review. Anything I say about it beyond the superficial summary you can find here or on the book's back cover would spoil things that I think shouldn't be spoiled. Nana's no-nonsense view of the world, so typical for a cat, was really the best vehicle for a story of closure like this. Their Japan-hopping tour of Satoru's friends was extremely satisfying from a storytelling perspective; each friend had just a little more to add to Satoru's personality and past that made me want to keep reading in a way that a book hasn't in a long time.

Funny, bittersweet, sad, this book hit all the right notes for me. Books don't make me cry ever, and this one did. An easy add to my favorite physical books shelf where space is at a premium.

I didn't know it was possible to cry from beginning to end while reading a book but this book succeeded in that task. Still, even with the crying, it's a beautiful, heart-felt book and there are moments in the book the chapter where Satoru and Nana take their trip to Sapporo together and travel slowly through Hokkaido is so beautiful that I felt as though as I waws there that show such beauty that I felt was there. I recommend reading this with a cat (or even a dog) curled up on your lap to help you get through it.

I've been reading many books with cats in them this past month or so. When I started this one with a cat as the protagonist, I wasn't aware of how it would affect me. It sounded all fluffy and light to me.

This book is perfectly poignant and beautifully written. The bond between a pet and its owner is so wonderfully described. Arikawa captures the love of a feline for its owner so masterfully that you're left ‘awwing' at all the cuteness and bawling at all the sadnesses, all the while gaining a perspective that you might not have had otherwise.

I would recommend this book to animal lovers (specifically cat) as I'm unsure if others would enjoy it just as much as I did.

p.s. This book also helps restore some faith in humanity