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As anyone who knows me will tell you, I am a cat person. Oh, I love dogs, too, but there’s a special place in my heart for indomitable felines. I have two little furries, Jade and Curry, who are pictured on the left. I’ve read several books featuring cats…Dewey, The Library Cat, the true story of a tiny orange kitten who was found in the book return box of a library in the dead of winter who became a mascot for the library and the small town. Cheshire Cheese Cat by Carmen Deedy about a cat living in England whose favorite food is not mice and rats but cheese. And the most recent title, Serendipity & Me by Judith Roth.

There is a sadness in our house that is like the fog outside our door, thick and impenetrable. The fog outside took my mother and then moved in to haunt us. I want something warm and alive to remind me that I am too. One rainy night, there’s a sound at the front door. Dad opens it and in flies a small puffball with ears. Dad almost smiles as he catches the little creature and hands it to me. She looks up at me with her amazing blue eyes and I melt. Dad frowns and says that he’ll take her to the shelter in the morning but I argue that I will find a good home for her…knowing that I have my work cut out for me because I want that good home to be mine. I just need to figure out a way to make my dad fall in love with Serendipity in 7 days or less!

This moving story is about a family held fast in the unrelenting grip of pain. Sara is unable to move on because her father’s grief at the loss of Sara’s mother 4 years earlier is so powerful it has shut him down, completely. Then a little mewing, mischievous kitten enters, batting her little paws and slowly but realistically, bringing healing and cuddling back into their lives. The anguish the pair feels is almost palpable and, though the climax is a bit contrived, it is still a sweet, sweet story of how something as tiny as a kitten can break down a mountain of grief. Cat fans will definitely enjoy this tale…that is, if you can get past gazing adoringly at the kitty on the cover! Who could possibly say no to that face?

And for your kitten viewing pleasure…