‘You don’t own a cat, they own you’ is very much the truth regardless of who you are, or your impact on society. As Susannah Fullerton explains in her new book…
Susannah Fullerton’s literary biography explores the fascinating connection cats are able the create with their owners, and the impact it has on said writer’s work. It brings to light the positive impact a cat can have on anyone, and how a writer’s inspiration can stem from their cats’ behaviours. This ranges from a cat’s ability to keep their owner to a schedule by waking them up for breakfast, to how a cat’s characteristics and demeanour can also influence someone’s create thoughts and processes.
The book is laid out in short snippets, allowing you to dip in and out as you please, without losing track. This makes for light and easy reading with very little to take time and digest what you have just read. As you move through each influential cat, it is brought to light how learning about a writer’s relationship with their cat is to understand the deeper meanings behind that writer’s work.
For either a cat-lover, or a lover of literacy, this is the book you didn’t realise you needed. With small anecdotes about some of society’s most recognisable names, this information you gather is only really useful if you’re either in discussion with like-minded individuals, or taking part in a particularly challenging quiz. But in a way that’s the beauty of it.
How else would you find out that Sanuel Johson, best known as a poet and playwright, fed his beloved cat Hodge on Oysters. Or that Foss, feline friend of Edward Lear, not only just had half a tail, but is likely the inspiration for The Owl and the Pussy-cat, Lear’s best-known work.
While the books pull lies in its witty and light-hearted tone, that’s ultimately where it may push away some individuals looking for a deeper analysis behind a cat’s impact on someone’s work. Due to the time in which some authors lives, and the depth of which their personal lives were recorded, some stories air on the side of teased rather than critically detailed, examined, and explored.
Overall however, this book makes the purr-fect gift for lovers of both cats and literacy alike. It makes you realise that the bond you feel with your own cats if felt regardless of who you are, or your impact on society. And also brings to light how significant of an impact a cat will have on your life.
Great Writers & the Cats who Owned Them is not yet available, but can be pre-ordered on Amazon ahead of its release on 16 October, 2025.
Pre-order here