Tomorrow is National Cat Day, and to celebrate, author Carlie Sorosiak has written a blogpost for us on the inspirations behind her upcoming new book, My Life as a Cat.
I’m mildly allergic to cats. I will never tell that to Bella.
I first met Bella in her foster home, alongside eleven other cats; she’d just managed to escape from the upstairs bedroom, dangling from the doorknob with all sixteen of her front toes. Her polydactyl paws are chunky, like the world’s most adorable oven mitts. And she’s brilliant. So incredibly brilliant.
Can you tell that I fell in love?
My parents agreed: Yep, she’s the one. We’d adopted numerous cats before, but none as outgoing as Bella. She’s a Christmas-tree climber, a neighbor-greeter, a guardian of our elderly golden retriever. You gaze into her alien-green eyes, and she purrs contentedly back.
About a year ago, I’d just finished writing a novel from the perspective of a dog – I, Cosmo. Naturally, I believed, a cat should come next. But I was also tossing around an idea about friendly extraterrestrials. Suddenly, it clicked: Why not combine the two? That’s how Leonard in My Life as a Cat was born. An alien trapped in feline form, he’s a little bit of Bella – and also Duncan, and Sooty, and Bailey. My life has been full of wonderful cats.
I knew that I wanted to give him a family name. “Leonard” was my grandfather’s. He used to feed the stray cats in his neighborhood, and I like to think that he would’ve loved this book – and Bella, too. She would’ve rubbed her face against his whole face: a proper kitty greeting.
One more thing. I wrote this book before the world seemed to fall apart. I wrote it because I was trying to make sense of Earth, and why humans do the things they do. Now, more than ever, I hope it helps you feel less alone.
Thank you, Carlie!
With beautiful writing and a truly unique voice, My Life as a Cat is a heart-warming adventure, reminiscent of E.T. and perfect for fans of Flora and Ulysses – a wise, funny, and moving story of what it means to find a family.
Here’s a look inside the book:
My Life as a Cat will be in shops in September – you can pre-order it from Waterstones here, from Hive here, and from Amazon here.
