Susannah Fullerton’s latest work traces the world, literature, and humanity through feline companionship

📚🐈 The history of our world is beyond well-documented — and so is the history of literature. What’s not as adeptly documented, however, is the part cats had to play. In her latest work of non-fiction, Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them, Canadian-born Australian author and literary historian Susannah Fullerton puts history in a brand new context: feline companionship.

What to expect: In under 250 pages, Fullerton pens new biographies for some of the world’s most renowned authors and thinkers — including Samuel Johnson, who introduced the world’s first dictionary, British politicians Horace Walpole and Winston Churchill, Mark Twain, Charles Dickens, and more. These biographies do not center on those famed names, but rather their cats.

What may initially seem as a frivolous or humorous undertaking soon proves to be a strenuously researched stroke of genius. Through these cats, the author explores the importance of companionship in the creative process, the evolution of human behavior as exhibited through domestication and pet ownership, the creation of new literary genres inspired by lost pets — fun fact: the gothic genre, introduced by Walpole, was inspired by his cat’s untimely and gruesome demise — and how some of the world’s most popular works of literature had a certain “mews.”

What we loved: This was hands-down one of the most refreshing reads we’ve experienced as of late — we were grinning cheek-to-cheek throughout its length. You need not necessarily be a lover of cats or literature to enjoy this book; you need only be a human navigating life. Fullerton’s writing is tight, concise, and incredibly witty. Her pun work is spot on, and there’s plenty of comedic relief to be had amidst the bite-sized history lessons. She also employs interjectionary “paws for thought” chapters that add brilliant historical context and act as bridges between one chapter and another.

The verdict: “The paws behind the pen have been mighty indeed,” Fullerton writes, and we must agree. If you’ve been going through a little bit of a reading block, this book should do the trick. Funny, informative, and thought-provoking, Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them might not be a book you’d immediately think of picking up, but one you’ll regret not reading. Whether conveyed directly or inferred between the lines, the book presents a slew of valuable lessons pertaining to creativity, innovation, and emotional well-being. Bonus points if you read with a cat on your lap.

WHERE TO READ IT- You can find the e-book and the hardback on Amazon.