Review: The Cat Who Could Read Backwards

The Cat Who Could Read Backwards by Lilian Jackson Braun

My rating: 4 of 5 stars



- The Cat Who Books -


I first discovered the "Cat Who" books as a teen in one of those happy accidents that our favorite books are often stumbled upon for the first time. I don't remember which library I first made this chance discovery in, but I do remember the first one I read, it was The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts. I am an avid lover of ghost stories and this proved interesting. It was, and when I found out that it was only one book in a series of many, I procured a great many of them from a used book store.

The "Cat Who" books are classic whodunits with a feline twist, and including the rather kitchy romances of the 60s and 70s. These murder mysteries unfold with precision and keep you entertained and guessing about the whos and hows until the end.

The Cat Who Could Read Backwards is our first introduction to the characters Qwilleran, an old fashioned newspaper reporter with a sensitive moustache, and Koko, a siamese cat with a variety of sluthing talents, including reading backwards. The author, [a:Lilian Jackson Braun|21625|Lilian Jackson Braun|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1206733773p2/21625.jpg], is very capable in her descriptions of these soon-to-be beloved characters and also in their development as the story progresses. Anyone who has ever owned a cat will chuckle at the perfect descriptions of a cat's movements and temperment, such as in the following passage:

Qwilleran went to the kitchenette, approached the refrigerator, and found himself face to face with a clam, cool-eyed Koko.

Qwilleran gasped. "You devil! Were you sitting there all the time?"

Koko, huddled in an awkward pose on the refrigerator top, answered with a curt syllable.

"What's the matter, old fellow? Are you unhappy?"

The cat shifted position irritably. Now he crouched with his body hovering above the hard porcelain surface. His haunches angled up like fins, and the fur over his shoulder blades spread open like a huge dandelion gone to seed.

"You're uncomfortable! That's what's wrong. After dinner we'll go upstairs and get your cushion. Is that okay?"

Koko squeezed both eyes.

Braun is also one of the few female writers who I give credit for writing a convincing male lead. While I would welcome a guy's opinion on this, personally I can actually imagine Qwilleran as a real man of the 60s and not a woman in a tweed suit with far too many feelings and subtle ways.

While the books are beginning to date themselves, it's more in a nostalgic, capturing the feel of an era way; not in a stilted alien way that we can't connect to. The characters and situations are still very much alive.


- Cat Who #1, The Cat Who Could Read Backwards -


The Cat Who Could Read Backwards introduces us to Qwilleran's world of 60s newspaper reporting -- back when everything was done on typewriters, hatted gentlemen went to press clubs and talked about "scoops," and the newspaper woman was a rarity. The character's names are often purposefully ridiculous, such as names of newspaper men Odd Bunsen and Arch Riker.

Qwilleran has been, rather reluctantly, assigned to art writing. This leads him on a journey through "modern art" which baffles him as much as I'm sure it will most readers. This book was first published in 1966, the height of the pop art and junk art crazes. The story is as much a look at the bizarrities of the art world as it is a murder mystery.

While renting an apartment from a fellow collumnist (an art critic) Qwilleran meets Kao K'o-Kung, an unusually smart and intuitive siamese cat. He dubs the art critic's cat, Koko, since the strange Chinese name is a bit beyond him, and is soon duped into cat-sitting. But while the art critic is out of town, Qwilleran is pulled into the world of modern art...and murder.

- Closing Thoughts and Recommendations -

This book stands alone, or as a great introduction to the series. I recommend it for teens and adults who enjoy the classic murder mysteries of authors like [a:Agatha Christie|123715|Agatha Christie|http://photo.goodreads.com/authors/1321738793p2/123715.jpg]. It also might be of interest to the art student. My mother actually read a few paragraphs aloud that describe a "Happening" during her history class covering the art of the 60s. Being a cat lover is not a prerequisite, but the cat comments are sure to be enjoyed if you happen to have a feline friend.



View all my reviews