In this lavishly illustrated volume, Rodney Dale presents some of the finest renderings of cats as they have appeared in books over the centuries. Some, like Sir John Tenniel's classic "Cheshire Cat" or Lewis Caroll's "Alice's Adventures under Ground", are well known; others, such as the cats shown in the margins of the "Lindisfarne Gospels" and "Luttrell Psalter", may be new to many readers. From Ancient Egypt onward, cat illustrators have endeavoured to capture the character of this notoriously elusive animal. Among those whose work is reproduced in "Cats in Books" are Leonardo da Vinci, Albrecht Durer, Arthur Rackham, and Aubrey Beardsley. Here, too, are images from Edward Gorey's playfull version of T.S. Elliot's "Old Possum Book of Practical Cats" and Kathleen Hale's "Orlando". Feline fanciers and bibliophiles alike will delight in the cats depicted in this distinctive volume.
Another library sale find; one I'd never seen before, but really it's a book about cats. In books. How bad could it possibly be?
It's a gem! The only reason I didn't rate it a bit higher is because it's a rather too concise overview of cats in literary history. It's a slim volume; easy to read in one sitting. Rather than looking at cats as subjects in literature, it sticks to an illustrative perspective: cats in illuminated manuscripts, fables, short stories and, of course, children's literature. It's fully illustrated itself, of course, with examples for each entry. A nice edition from the British Library.
As I said, a gem of a find; one of those karmic gifts that make library sales even better.
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24 February, 2017:
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24 February, 2017:
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