The Nine Emotional Lives of Cats: A Journey into the Feline Heart Book

I picked up this book at the Lifeline Bookfest. A lucky find, I think, as I would never have thought to find a book like this! While I hoped to get a more general understanding of the psychology of cats, in the hopes of better understanding my cats, his observations on his 5 cats, made this a very enjoyable read. Masson references other titles which I would be interested in following up too.

I found that this book gave me some deeper insights into the emotional lives of my two cats, who seem to hate each other, or are they simply trying to learn to play together? I certainly feel that I have a greater insight into Sunny, the newest addition to my little cat family, a stray with a traumatic kitten life before she came to live with me. I feel that Masson has give me more insight into her life and feel that in the past couple of weeks while I read this book, has helped us bond.

My favourite quote comes at the end of the last chapter (before the epilogue):

"Cats have an emotional directness, a purity of purpose (or is it purposelessness?) - no compromise, especially with the honesty of their feelings. Here I am, every moment of the cat says, love me as I am or not at all.

With my cats I am learning the lesson of the sufficiency of the moment. No yesterday, no tomorrow, only the magic of today, of this single moment. No remorse, no regret, no yearning, just the play of now."

What better role models could I ask for?

I dedicate this review to my cats, Arora and Sunny, who bring so much joy and enchantment into my life.