Stacey Yu Recommends Books About Cats (and Their Owners)

Joy Williams wrote that one of eight essential attributes of the short story is “An animal within to give its blessing.” When I first came upon this wisdom, I was on the seventh draft of my debut novel Kitten, about a woman who develops an intense connection with her older boyfriend’s cat. I felt as though Williams had given me my own private blessing for my book. Many people ask me how I came to such an absurd or ‘wacky’ premise. But in my view, our relationships to animals, whose lives are untouched by the existential woes and artifices of personhood, are the richest and most evident ciphers for our own often inscrutable psyches.

Using animals to illuminate what it means to be human is far from an original idea.

There are so many culture-defining animals in texts, going back all the way to Argos, Odysseus’s faithful dog. But what is it about cats that fascinated me? It was partly their charming irreproachability, that prim self-command we associate with the feline. I was also drawn to their obvious cuteness and whimsy, encapsulated by the myriad of beloved Japanese magic cat books. But beyond these qualities was something more ineffable—their insistence on their own autonomy. Unlike dogs, whose loyalty binds them, or birds, whose wings liberate them, or humans, whose obligations limit and distract us, cats can be kept, domesticized, and coddled, yet they still demand independence. Cats do what they want. They possess that distinctly animal yet simultaneously human impulse to be, and to remain, free.

I’ve loved many books featuring cats. Some center them, and some only include them in a few unforgettable scenes, but each book captures something essential about being alive, alone, lost, free; that is to say, each story has been blessed by the cat inside them.

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Lost Cat by Mary Gaitskill

On a trip to Italy, Gaitskill comes upon a stray, sick cat and brings him to live with her in the United States. She names him Gattino, the Italian word for kitten—a tragically fitting name because the scrappy Gattino is still a kitten when he unexpectedly disappears. So begins Gaitskill’s slim memoir, one of the powerful and affecting pieces of writing I’ve read. Gattino’s disappearance unravels Gaitskill; in its aftermath, she is led to confront the grief of previous unrelated losses, from the two children she used to foster to her late father. The story of a lost cat is really a story about the wells of compassion, cruelty, and need contained within all of us.

Claudine in Paris by Colette

Is there any sidekick more chic than a cat? Perhaps a French one. Seventeen-year-old Claudine is furious to be moving to Paris on the whim of her oddball father. Leaving her beloved village behind, with only her cat Fanchette by her side, she must open herself to more urban wonders and disappointments: curious family members, frisky streets, the opera. This gem of a novel chronicles a precocious young mind determined to absorb all the world has to offer, but some of the most irresistible characterizations are of the proud Fanchette. Whether it’s Fanchette’s manner of handling objects (her paw is “a little spoon”), or her dignified litterbox routine, the intricacies of her personality are dutifully recorded by the viciously observant Claudine. As with Claudine, the inner notes of people’s personalities often ring louder when their pet is in the room.

The Wall by Marlen Haushofer

This 1965 novel, translated from German, tells the story of a middle-aged woman who finds herself the lone survivor in an unexpected apocalypse in the countryside. Without any humans for company, she relies on the few animals that remain—a cat, a dog, a cow—both for survival and connection. The novel examines the intricate and thankless task of living with remarkable control. But my favorite parts were the passages on the distrustful old cat, unperturbed by the fact that the world has changed forever, and Pearl, the kitten she later gives birth to. Beautiful, affectionate, and snowy white, Pearl seems, from birth, unfit for the dangers of the wild. The narrator falls in love with her against her better instincts, as did I. Finishing this book was like losing something important. I wanted nothing more than to be back inside its pages.

Mornings without Mii by Mayumi Inaba

In this short and moving memoir, Inaba chronicles her 20-year-long relationship with her cat Mii, whom she rescued from a high fence. What begins as an affectionate bond quickly solidifies into the most serious relationship in Inaba’s life, one that endures across shifts in both her marriage and career. As Inaba (and Mii) build a life of solitude and creative fulfillment, Mii slowly grows older. Eventually, Inaba looks after Mii with all the loyalty, piety, and sometimes uncomfortable intimacy of a person caring for their aging parent. Mornings without Mii shows that few things are more rewarding and humbling than devoting yourself to a creature you know you will outlive.

Kiki’s Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono

Most people know this story from the Studio Ghibli film, but it is also an utterly charming children’s novel. Kiki is a young witch about to come of age, which means she must leave her home and find a new town in need of her powers. With her cheeky talking black cat Jiji, she embarks on a series of heartwarming misadventures. Jiji, so proud and so silly, is one of my favorite fictional cats; the vignette where he—to his great disdain—must pretend to be a stuffed animal always makes me laugh. The Ghibli movie is faithful to Kiki’s story, but the book contains many more delightful escapades. I love stories that capture the vibrant landscape of childhood, a place as full of magic and wonder as it is of fear and danger. In this decently safe world, however, it is Jiji who brings the trouble in great fun spades.

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Kitten by Stacey Yu is available from Random House, a division of Penguin Random House, LLC.