My Wilderness Wildcats

By Mike Tomkies

I didn't really know anything about the wildcats of the England, Scotland and Wales. I didn't even know there were wildcats or what a wildcat was exactly. Turns out the wildcat is a small cat, about the same size as the domesticated house cat, but with a much different temperament. They truly are "wild cats" and cannot be tamed, unlike many large wild cats, such as tigers and lions. They are native to Europe but are rare.
Wildcats have pretty disappeared from England and Wales but can still be found in the more remote areas of Scotland. Tomkies was given two small wildcat kittens who had either lost their mother or been abandoned by her. Tomkies lived in such an isolated area of Scotland that there were no roads leading to his house, it could only be reached by boat. Being a naturalist, and not really knowing much about wildcats, Tomkies felt the two kittens would make interesting study subjects. He named them Cleo and Patra and built pens for them and raised them on meat and milk. In time he also acquired a rather elderly male wildcat, a refugee from a zoo, and was able to successfully breed him with one of the females who produced two kittens, Fred and Mia. Eventually, he released all the wildcats back into the wild, in the fullness of time.

This was quite an interesting read, although at one point it became a bit repetitious as he described his routine of giving the wildcats some freedom, while continuing to feed them, then capturing them and once again placing them in pens. He was worried that they couldn't make it on their own, but they proved him wrong. Even the elderly male who had spent most his life in a zoo eventually became a skilled and successful hunter. But besides the wildcats, this book is an interesting glimpse of a life lived in the back country, without electricity or central heating, just a man and his dog and a some wildcats.

The Cats of Our Lives

By Franklin Dohanyos, Editor

A collection of stories and anecdotes about cats. Mainly, it is a short reminiscences about the cats that have shared their lives with people. Some of the stories are interesting, some are amusing, and some are predictable, but all illustrate what amazing creatures cats are. Not exactly a scintillating read, but it was OK.

Homer's Odyssey

By Gwen Cooper

Homer is a blind cat. He was adopted as a little kitten by Gwen Cooper. He was still recovering from the surgery where his eyes were removed due to a terrible infection. Like all baby cats, he was born blind and he lost his eyes before ever being able to see.
Gwen was not at a good point in her life when she adopted Homer. She had recently broken up with the man with whom she thought to spend the rest of her life. When he told her he no longer loved her, she had to move out of his place and into the home of a friend. This was just a temporary arrangement as she was expected to find her own place soon. But the weeks stretched into months and still Gwen lived with her friend along with Gwen's other two cats and eventually with the blind kitten, Homer.
The friend was very tolerant of Gwen and her kitties but eventually asked her to move out and Gwen had to take the humbling step of moving back in with her parents. Her meager salary was just not enough to afford a decent dwelling of her own. At this point she had to take a look at her chosen career path and make some changes. Although living with her parents was not as bad as she feared it would be, still she needed to make her way in the world, on her own and with her kitties.
As luck would have it she landed a good job in New York City, just in time to witness the horrid and tragic events of 911. Away from her apartment at the time, her kitties were left alone for several days until she could manage to get back to them. Fortunately all three kitties were OK, although very frantic and ecstatic to see Gwen again.
The place where she worked depended on the many businesses located in the Twin Towers and surrounding area, so Gwen was once again looking for work. Despite the urgings of friends and family, she decided to stay in New York, mainly because she met a man she really, really liked, the man she eventually married.
Throughout this story of a young woman finding out how to stand on her own two feet is the story of Homer and the other two cats. Often, facing difficult times and hard decisions, the author drew hope and inspiration from Homer's undaunted and lively life. Blind though he might be, Homer still enjoys life with all the zest and vigor of any sighted kitty. Brave and fearless despite his blindness and miniature size, at one point Homer even stands off a burger long enough for Gwen to dial 9-1-1. Homer is a heroic figure to Gwen and earns admirers among those lucky enough to meet him with his pluck and courage. Whenever life seems overwhelming, Homer is Gwen's shining example of how to face life without flinching.

This was a pretty good story. I enjoyed reading about Homer's gungho attitude and his amazing exploits, really surprising the things he can do without eyes. The part about 911 was heartbreaking and I really felt her anguish, especially about the kitties left alone for days in the apartment. I didn't care too much for the gushing descriptions of the new boyfriend. But over all I enjoyed reading about Homer the wonder kitty.