Susannah Fullerton on Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them at Warilla Library

Event Details

Meet author Susannah Fullerton and hear about the research behind her newest book Great Writers and the Cats Who Owned Them!

Writers and cats go together beautifully. In the silence of a study, the cat is the perfect companion for an author – it doesn’t need to be taken for walks, yet is there for comfort. Throughout history, famous writers have loved and been inspired by their cats.

Edward Lear, author of The Owl and the Pussycat, was inspired by Foss, his cat who, with only half a tail, would never have won a beauty contest. Dickens was more of a dog man, yet was won over by a deaf kitten named Bob. French author Colette had several husbands, but none of them ever mattered as much as her Chartreux cats, and her short story La Chatte reflects that passion. Mark Twain so loved cats that, when he went on holiday, he rented kittens to play with. Sir Winston Churchill claimed that his cat Nelson contributed to the war effort, and macho Ernest Hemingway turned into a total softie when it came to the more than twenty cats who shared his homes and Dame Lynley Dodd was inspired by two family pets when she created the memorable Scarface Claw and Slinky Malinki.

The book also includes fascinating anecdotes about literary cats – in hotels, book shops, theatres, nursery rhymes and stories. This is a book for anyone who loves cats and who also loves great writing.

Books available to purchase at the event!