I couldn’t put this book down!
It’s the best feline biography I’ve ever encountered. The author, Gwen Cooper, beautifully writes about her relationships with her three cats, their personalities, and their interactions with each other. She certainly admires Homer and she describes him in ways that clearly illustrate we can learn a lot by following his lead.
She adopted the amazing Homer as a kitten whose eyes were removed in order to save his life. When the veterinarian tried to find a home for this little fella, she quickly found that nobody seemed to want to adopt a black cat who would be blind. But Gwen gave him a chance and he’s now lived a long, healthy, happy life by joining her family.
The most heart-wrenching portions of the book were about living very near ground zero in New York on 9/11/01. Gwen worked and lived near the World Trade Center at that time. That morning she was at work and upon evacuation wasn’t able to get home to her cats for several days following 9/11. (GASP!) I must admit that I could barely breathe as Gwen describes her anxiety as she desperately tried to get home to give her cats food and water. I can only imagine how panicked I would feel if I were in that position! It was very painful for me to read about, and I wish I had already known that all three cats survived and were even in relatively good health. Still… It’s a heart-wrenching tale.
There are many precious, funny stories about Homer’s antics through the years – from chasing a burglar/potential rapist out of their apartment, to greeting one of Gwen’s dates with a tampon Homer was playing with. (Many cats have discovered that tampons make really fun toys. They have crinkly wrappers, soft bodies, and long tails – like a mouse toy in a fun wrapper.)
I listened to the audiobook version of Homer’s Odyssey, which has a wonderful interview discussion with Gwen and her husband at the end of the book. After listening to the book, I ended up buying copies for myself and several other people. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants a light, feel-good read.
(Interested in viewing lists of books about cats or books about animals that I own or have read?)
(Note: I do not accept payment for mentions or reviews of products and services that I write about on this site.)
Leave a Reply