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Cat Pies: Feline Historical Trivia
Cat Pies - feline historical trivia (non-fiction) by Grace Elliot. Did the Victorian's really eat cat pies?Who invented the cat flap? Do black cats bring good or bad luck? Why did Victorian veterinarians have such a bad reputation?Is cat-gut really made from cats?How did cats win a battle?"Cat Pies" is a series of short essays which answers the above questions, as well as other matters of feline historical trivia! Please There is a bonus cat-themed short story at the end but BE WARNED - this story may upset those of a sensitive disposition with its portrayal of the gritty world of Victorian London. Also by Grace Elliot (fiction)A Dead Man's DebtEulogy's SecretHope's BetrayalVerity's Lie
55 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2011
3 people are currently reading
52 people want to read
About the author
Grace Elliot
19 books156 followersGrace Elliot leads a double life as a veterinarian by day and author of historical romance by night. She believes that intelligent people need to read romance as an antidote to the modern world.
Grace lives near London and is housekeeping staff to five cats, two teenage sons, one husband and a bearded dragon.
Grace lives near London and is housekeeping staff to five cats, two teenage sons, one husband and a bearded dragon.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
April 18, 2012
I picked up this short ebook on kindle as a freebie and figured I’d give it a shot as I’m a cat lover and interested in all things historical. There were a handful of typos here and there, which was to be expected as this looks like a self-published work – though it would be lovely if there were none. The ebook presents articles on cats throughout history and changing attitudes towards our furry feline friends.
Sensitive souls may wish to look away during the many examples of historical cruelty towards cats – attitudes which we would find shocking today. However there are also examples of the historical reverence of cats, particularly – gratifyingly to myself as an Egyptologist – in ancient Egypt. My favourite account is a snippet from Diodorus Siculus, a Greek writer travelling through Egypt c. 60 – 57 BCE, who recounts that an unfortunate Roman who had accidentally killed a cat could not be saved from the enraged native Egyptians by either the threat of Rome’s wrath or the attempted intervention of Pharaoh Ptolemaios XII Auletes (father of the famous Kleopatra VII). I felt sorry for the Roman, who surely did not deserve such a fate, especially as the incident had been an accident, but what an example of the strongly held native Egyptian customs and beliefs, that not even the threat of Rome nor that of the Macedonian Pharaoh could prevent what followed.
I did question one or two of the historical “facts” however. The author states that amongst the great historical figures who had a fear of cats were Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte. She provides anecdotes which comment on this fear in Napoleon Bonaparte, but doesn’t record the sources of these anecdotes apart from one which comes from a book written by Andrew Roberts. She offers no sources at all for the supposed assertion that Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, and Julius Caesar were all afraid of cats, and as an historian I have never come across any such sources in regards to any of the three individuals. Methinks this might be unsubstantiated urban legend. I did a Google search and whilst the statement comes up on a few pet websites, that all three men were afraid of cats, no evidence at all is presented to support this, apart from a vague “historical records suggest that…” Even an article on the subject in The Guardian (fairly well respected British broadsheet newspaper) admits that it can find absolutely no evidence to support this and cannot uncover the origins of such tales. A myth-busting website about common myths in history confirms that none of the sources for Alexander the Great mention cats at all.
Anyway, all in all though a cute little book for those of us who love both history and cats.
7 out of 10.
Sensitive souls may wish to look away during the many examples of historical cruelty towards cats – attitudes which we would find shocking today. However there are also examples of the historical reverence of cats, particularly – gratifyingly to myself as an Egyptologist – in ancient Egypt. My favourite account is a snippet from Diodorus Siculus, a Greek writer travelling through Egypt c. 60 – 57 BCE, who recounts that an unfortunate Roman who had accidentally killed a cat could not be saved from the enraged native Egyptians by either the threat of Rome’s wrath or the attempted intervention of Pharaoh Ptolemaios XII Auletes (father of the famous Kleopatra VII). I felt sorry for the Roman, who surely did not deserve such a fate, especially as the incident had been an accident, but what an example of the strongly held native Egyptian customs and beliefs, that not even the threat of Rome nor that of the Macedonian Pharaoh could prevent what followed.
I did question one or two of the historical “facts” however. The author states that amongst the great historical figures who had a fear of cats were Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon Bonaparte. She provides anecdotes which comment on this fear in Napoleon Bonaparte, but doesn’t record the sources of these anecdotes apart from one which comes from a book written by Andrew Roberts. She offers no sources at all for the supposed assertion that Genghis Khan, Alexander the Great, and Julius Caesar were all afraid of cats, and as an historian I have never come across any such sources in regards to any of the three individuals. Methinks this might be unsubstantiated urban legend. I did a Google search and whilst the statement comes up on a few pet websites, that all three men were afraid of cats, no evidence at all is presented to support this, apart from a vague “historical records suggest that…” Even an article on the subject in The Guardian (fairly well respected British broadsheet newspaper) admits that it can find absolutely no evidence to support this and cannot uncover the origins of such tales. A myth-busting website about common myths in history confirms that none of the sources for Alexander the Great mention cats at all.
Anyway, all in all though a cute little book for those of us who love both history and cats.
7 out of 10.
July 5, 2020
Fascinating
Lots of trivia. Interesting how some cultures worshiped cats and others feared them. Many cat stories and legends. Some are factual and some are useless nonsense.
Lots of trivia. Interesting how some cultures worshiped cats and others feared them. Many cat stories and legends. Some are factual and some are useless nonsense.
Read
June 12, 2020I contacted Grace directly via Kindle Boards because I'd seen her post about a new cat-related title and my interest was immediately piqued. Grace very kindly provided a review copy of her title - full of historical feline related trivia - and I had a quick look at the first few pages. Of course, I immediately fell hook line and sinker into the book and kept breaking off to read things to Mr B.
One of the things that has always intrigued me about cats is how many contradictory views there are of them. They have been revered and reviled, adored and abhored, loved and loathed for as long as we have had any sort of relationship with them. It is for those reasons that I find any volume that considers our relationship with cats very intriguing and Grace Elliot's title is no exception.
Sharing the secrets of the Cat Meat Man (which may or may not be as disturbing to you as it sounds - I'll save that mystery!) and covering a range of topics, Elliot's title offers a wonderful glimpse into cats through history. Full of trivia, literary and cultural references, anecdotes and quotations, this is a title that will appeal to trivia lovers and those with any interest in our feline friends.
An excellent addition to any library and a wonderful celebration of our furry friends. Or enemies. Whatever your view of cats, I defy you not to be fascinated by this volume and the things you'll learn about them.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I did not receive any further compensation. All views are my own.
One of the things that has always intrigued me about cats is how many contradictory views there are of them. They have been revered and reviled, adored and abhored, loved and loathed for as long as we have had any sort of relationship with them. It is for those reasons that I find any volume that considers our relationship with cats very intriguing and Grace Elliot's title is no exception.
Sharing the secrets of the Cat Meat Man (which may or may not be as disturbing to you as it sounds - I'll save that mystery!) and covering a range of topics, Elliot's title offers a wonderful glimpse into cats through history. Full of trivia, literary and cultural references, anecdotes and quotations, this is a title that will appeal to trivia lovers and those with any interest in our feline friends.
An excellent addition to any library and a wonderful celebration of our furry friends. Or enemies. Whatever your view of cats, I defy you not to be fascinated by this volume and the things you'll learn about them.
I received a copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review. I did not receive any further compensation. All views are my own.
May 3, 2012
Cat Pies – Feline Historical Trivia
By Grace Elliot
I loved the history behind this book, if not what I always found out as I read it. Did they really make Cat Meat Pies in Victorian England? Read the book, the answer is in there. The history of the men that went from neighborhood to neighborhood to sell meat to cat owners is also in there, fascinating stuff.
How did black cats go from being worshiped in Egypt to being considered bad luck? Medieval Europe had a lot to do with it. Read all about it in this fascinating book along with other cat trivia.
I could not put this book down as I went from fascinating fact to the next. The veterinarian practices have come a long way. “Cats are no longer treated as small dogs.” Is one line from the book, if you can imagine that was how veterinarians treated cats that were actually brought in, most weren’t.
If you find history fun and interesting, if you find cats as fascinating a subject as I do, please, pick up this book. Five full stars for the fun and careful way this subject was presented. But do be careful if you are tender hearted, there is a story at the end that may cause you tears, there are facts in this book that may cause the same, but it was so much fun to read in spite of all that.
By Grace Elliot
I loved the history behind this book, if not what I always found out as I read it. Did they really make Cat Meat Pies in Victorian England? Read the book, the answer is in there. The history of the men that went from neighborhood to neighborhood to sell meat to cat owners is also in there, fascinating stuff.
How did black cats go from being worshiped in Egypt to being considered bad luck? Medieval Europe had a lot to do with it. Read all about it in this fascinating book along with other cat trivia.
I could not put this book down as I went from fascinating fact to the next. The veterinarian practices have come a long way. “Cats are no longer treated as small dogs.” Is one line from the book, if you can imagine that was how veterinarians treated cats that were actually brought in, most weren’t.
If you find history fun and interesting, if you find cats as fascinating a subject as I do, please, pick up this book. Five full stars for the fun and careful way this subject was presented. But do be careful if you are tender hearted, there is a story at the end that may cause you tears, there are facts in this book that may cause the same, but it was so much fun to read in spite of all that.
December 17, 2011
I was sent this book as a free read by the author. This in no way reflected the review I am giving.
This was a wonderful short story about cats. The author had done so much research to tell this story. This book is so interesting. This was truly an amazing book to read and should me read by all people that love cats. I learned so much about my cats from this book. The author wrote a very good book. I will admit the title of the book does not describe or portray the book but it does not take away from anything in the book.
This was a wonderful short story about cats. The author had done so much research to tell this story. This book is so interesting. This was truly an amazing book to read and should me read by all people that love cats. I learned so much about my cats from this book. The author wrote a very good book. I will admit the title of the book does not describe or portray the book but it does not take away from anything in the book.
January 21, 2012
The material in the book was interesting, but the short story at the end just turned me off. 4 stars for the historical trivia, 1 star for the short story.
January 24, 2012
Loved everything but the last story - hated the ending!
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April 7, 2012Pointless book.
the-kindle-black-hole
October 23, 20121/16/12. Free on Kindle.
April 18, 2016
Not worth the time to download a free book
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews