Cat Chat

by Helene Thornton

When Helene Thornton moved to a small village in France to write and work on her art, she never imagined how drastically her life was going to change. She was warmly welcomed by the people of the village who regarded her as an eccentric Englishwoman, but it was the village cats who truly befriended her. So begins this extraordinary and charming love story of two people brought together by a share affection of cats, at a time in their lives when they might not expect to find new love. Drawn together by Monsieur's cat, their relationship remains forever wntwinned with cats and, of course, with the beautiful black-and-white cat Bebe. Set admist the French villages, cafes and houses of sunny Provence, this is an autobiographical love story with a difference.
This is an extraordinary and charming love story - an eccentric Englishwoman, an elderly and correct Frenchman, and cats. Lots of cats.

Genres: Nonfiction, Animals, Biography

176 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2000

About the author

Helene Thornton is the stage name of Elaine Smith, a former Bluebell girl and author of 17 novels, but she is perhaps best known as the mother of Welsh TV presenter Paula Yates.
She is also known as Heller Toren

Reviews

[Noella · Rating 3 out of 5]

Als de schrijfster een tijdje naar Zuid-Frankrijk verhuist om inspiratie op te doen, ontmoet ze een kat, Bébé, tot wie ze zich onmiddellijk aangetrokken voelt. Ze slaagt er al gauw in om een band met de kat op te bouwen, en ook met zijn baasje. Ze trouwt zelfs met deze 'Monsieur'. Na hun huwelijk adopteren ze nog verschillende katten die komen aanlopen, waaronder een zwangere poes die 4 jonkies krijgt, en waarvan ze geen afstand kunnen doen. Het koppel leeft een gelukkig bestaan met hun katten.

Leuk boekje voor tussendoor, maar niet veel meer.

[Anita · Rating 3 out of 5]

A charming little story about an English woman, whose second marriage to a French Monsieur, results in a house in Provence filled with cats. Both being lonely, their meeting and subsequent partnership becomes a catalyst for a growing collection of cats of various personalities. The felines literally “take over” the household and, of course, the entire book.
This story will appeal to animal lovers, but will not win any literary prizes. It is rather self-indulgent and written from a biased point of view. It is also a little repetitive in the second half.
A cat lover’s tale. A quick, easy read.

[Yvette · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a refreshing read encompassing the things I love books and cats. While reading the book I was part of the close knit community in France. One can never going wrong with a guy loving cats.

[Alison Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful memoir of life in Provence - good food and wine, an unexpected second marriage decorated with a lot of cats! for full review please go to: http://thebooksmithblog.wordpress.com

[Raya Schaduwjaagster · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charmant.

[Jothi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hartverwarmend boek. Ik liet me graag meevoeren naar de Provence met Hélène, Monsieur en de katten.

[Sanne Vandromme · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mooi boek, maar ik was wat teleurgesteld dat het romantische verhaal niet wat verder werd gedetailleerd.

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

The day I wrote my blog entry about Cat(s), I found this book at the used book store where I work and was enchanted. It appears to be a British-published book, which did not come up when I attempted to enter it onto GoodReads (though I did later find it on Amazon). It's a delightful little book about a British woman who vacations in the South of France and whose life is changed by a cat she sees in the window of a house there. The story goes on through her move to France and the collection of cats she and her husband live with. Just an enjoyable, sweet little book, which answers my question about where are all the cats in literature!

[Ilia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed this coffee table book. I thought to just briefly take a look at the book when it arrived in the mail and to put it aside for later because I was rather busy at the moment. That didn't happen!

The book is so charming and humorous that I couldn't put it down!

Two cats email each other to share tips on how to train their people. Accompanying the dialog are cute illustrations and plates with whimsical cat paintings that enhance the experience.

It's a perfect book for the coffee table.

[Kat · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book so much! This was such a lovely story and a wonderful departure from my usual crime novels and such. A nice story of a French village and all the different cats that found their way into the author's life. I love her writing style. I'd really consider this book to be one of my all-time favorites.

[Wouter · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little book full of cat love, and sometimes also grief which can take you really deep into the described situation, provided you're an animal lover. I liked reading it but found the writing to be a bit too shallow, never going too much into detail and sometimes skipping too much regarding the overall timeline.

[JackieB · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a charming book. It's well written easy to read and quite amusing. People who don't like cats might not enjoy it because the author is passionate about them and their cats are a major theme in the book (as you could probably guess from the books' title).

[Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a cute read about life with cats.

[Brenda]

I don't have a copy of this book so how this got on to my reading entry I do not know - glitch in the system? Unable to find away of deleting it!

[Desiree McCaskill]

A lovely short read. A must if you like cats and France.