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Onde Vivem os Gatos Perdidos
O mais belo fim do mundo desde que a Terra existe. Quando tudo chega ao fim, quem realmente importa para ti?
Aisha, de dezassete anos, não vê a sua irmã, June, há dois anos. Agora que o mundo vai acabar dentro de nove meses, porque um meteorito vem diretamente a caminho da Terra, Aisha, apoiada pela mãe, decide que está na altura de encontrar June e de curar as feridas que infligiram uma à outra.
Juntamente com Walter, o namorado de Aisha, e os pais deste (e ainda Fleabag, um gato vadio), embarcam numa viagem de norte a sul da Malásia numa autocaravan muito bem decorada, a fim de se reconciliarem com o passado, de perceberem o presente e acreditarem no futuro.
Tendo como pano de fundo uma catástrofe mundial, este romance está repleto de amor, cura e esperança.
Aisha, de dezassete anos, não vê a sua irmã, June, há dois anos. Agora que o mundo vai acabar dentro de nove meses, porque um meteorito vem diretamente a caminho da Terra, Aisha, apoiada pela mãe, decide que está na altura de encontrar June e de curar as feridas que infligiram uma à outra.
Juntamente com Walter, o namorado de Aisha, e os pais deste (e ainda Fleabag, um gato vadio), embarcam numa viagem de norte a sul da Malásia numa autocaravan muito bem decorada, a fim de se reconciliarem com o passado, de perceberem o presente e acreditarem no futuro.
Tendo como pano de fundo uma catástrofe mundial, este romance está repleto de amor, cura e esperança.
192 pages, Paperback
First published February 3, 2022
63 people are currently reading
1336 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 273 reviews
October 26, 2022
Liked it well enough, but don’t be fooled, this book doesn’t contain that much cats :(
February 5, 2023
What I expected:
A fun story where the characters go on a road trip and visit cool places in Malaysia, meet some interesting people and probably a bunch of cats.
What I got:
A sad main character who thinks about how sad everyone around her and people who have died and they are all going to die and they are kind of fine with it and her sister disappeared, only they found her the first time they tried to find her. Oh, and despite the fact that Cats in the title is plural, there is only one cat.
My main issue with this, is that is it sooooo boring. Stuff happens, I guess. But I feel like the main focus of this book was the emotion or something, and I just didn't find that interesting. Most of the book involved characters staring sadly at places they have been, and reminiscing about the past. It was all well described, especially the emotion of the main character, but it was just kind of dry and boring. There was also no proper ending, I will never actually know if they all survived the end of the world or not, it just isn't made clear, which is really unsatisfying. The characters were all really nice and I think I would have liked them better if they were in a different story.
Overall:
The book itself (i.e the writing and the characters) was fine, pretty good actually. However, the plot was so dry and uneventful, not to mention very unsatisfying at the end.
A fun story where the characters go on a road trip and visit cool places in Malaysia, meet some interesting people and probably a bunch of cats.
What I got:
A sad main character who thinks about how sad everyone around her and people who have died and they are all going to die and they are kind of fine with it and her sister disappeared, only they found her the first time they tried to find her. Oh, and despite the fact that Cats in the title is plural, there is only one cat.
My main issue with this, is that is it sooooo boring. Stuff happens, I guess. But I feel like the main focus of this book was the emotion or something, and I just didn't find that interesting. Most of the book involved characters staring sadly at places they have been, and reminiscing about the past. It was all well described, especially the emotion of the main character, but it was just kind of dry and boring. There was also no proper ending, I will never actually know if they all survived the end of the world or not, it just isn't made clear, which is really unsatisfying. The characters were all really nice and I think I would have liked them better if they were in a different story.
Overall:
The book itself (i.e the writing and the characters) was fine, pretty good actually. However, the plot was so dry and uneventful, not to mention very unsatisfying at the end.
May 5, 2023
It had potential but it fell flat for me
March 1, 2022
4.5/5
Today the heater was broken, so I spend the day under a blanket, cuddled up with my cat, and this was the perfect book to read.
I had pretty high expectations for this book, for no particular reason. I had never seen or heard about this book before. I was in the bookstore in the beginning of February, normally I only buy books with titles I recognize, but this book... it just jumped out to me. The title, at least. If something has cats, I'm interested. So I bought it. After buying it I really looked at what it was about, and I actually really wanted to read this.
It wan't exactly what I was expecting. I thought this was going to be a fun, cute and quick read. It was quick, but it was also a bit heavy. Of course it is, the world is ending. In the book. I should've seen that as a sign. But even though I started reading this, thinking it was going to be a feel good book, I still really enjoyed every page of this. The story kept being interesting, I liked the main character. I liked having an angry main character. I loved Walter, I wish I had a Walter in real life.
The title made me think there would be more cats, it's a tiny bit misleading because you have one cat, not multiple cats, and they don't meet him on the road but before leaving. Still loved Fleabag though. I want more books with cats.
-- SPOILERS AHEAD --
Overall this book was going to be a full 5 stars until the ending. I didn't really find it satisfying. I wanted to know what would happen when the world ended. If the bunker they were building is going to work. If it worked, what do they do when the world ending is over? How do they survive after? I didn't like that the book just ended like that. I need answers. That's the only reason this isn't a full 5 star, but since until then it was going to be, I rounded it up to five anyways.
Today the heater was broken, so I spend the day under a blanket, cuddled up with my cat, and this was the perfect book to read.
I had pretty high expectations for this book, for no particular reason. I had never seen or heard about this book before. I was in the bookstore in the beginning of February, normally I only buy books with titles I recognize, but this book... it just jumped out to me. The title, at least. If something has cats, I'm interested. So I bought it. After buying it I really looked at what it was about, and I actually really wanted to read this.
It wan't exactly what I was expecting. I thought this was going to be a fun, cute and quick read. It was quick, but it was also a bit heavy. Of course it is, the world is ending. In the book. I should've seen that as a sign. But even though I started reading this, thinking it was going to be a feel good book, I still really enjoyed every page of this. The story kept being interesting, I liked the main character. I liked having an angry main character. I loved Walter, I wish I had a Walter in real life.
The title made me think there would be more cats, it's a tiny bit misleading because you have one cat, not multiple cats, and they don't meet him on the road but before leaving. Still loved Fleabag though. I want more books with cats.
-- SPOILERS AHEAD --
Overall this book was going to be a full 5 stars until the ending. I didn't really find it satisfying. I wanted to know what would happen when the world ended. If the bunker they were building is going to work. If it worked, what do they do when the world ending is over? How do they survive after? I didn't like that the book just ended like that. I need answers. That's the only reason this isn't a full 5 star, but since until then it was going to be, I rounded it up to five anyways.
May 20, 2023
Just the one cat, actually. (Ripoff!) But Fleabag, a one-eared stray the colour of gone-off curry who just won’t go away, is a fine companion on this end-of-the-world Malaysian road trip. Mikail’s debut teen novel, which won the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize 2023, imagines that news has come of an asteroid that will make direct contact with Earth in one year. The clock is ticking; just nine months left now. Teenage Aisha and her boyfriend Walter have come to terms with the fact that they’ll never get to do all the things they want, from attending university to marrying and having children.
Aisha’s father died of cancer when she was young, and her older sister June disappeared two years ago. Aisha decides that what is most important is finding June and trying to heal their estrangement, so she and Walter set out in a campervan with his parents and her mother (and Fleabag, of course).
Mikail sensitively portrays the tangle of anger, grief and fear that these characters feel, and it’s interesting to encounter the foods and flora of a country that will be unfamiliar to many readers. Even though everything feels doomed, there are hopeful tasks that Aisha and her family can be part of. Teens will no doubt be smart enough to realise that we face a similar calamity in the form of climate breakdown; it’s just that the timescale is a little different.
Aisha’s father died of cancer when she was young, and her older sister June disappeared two years ago. Aisha decides that what is most important is finding June and trying to heal their estrangement, so she and Walter set out in a campervan with his parents and her mother (and Fleabag, of course).
Mikail sensitively portrays the tangle of anger, grief and fear that these characters feel, and it’s interesting to encounter the foods and flora of a country that will be unfamiliar to many readers. Even though everything feels doomed, there are hopeful tasks that Aisha and her family can be part of. Teens will no doubt be smart enough to realise that we face a similar calamity in the form of climate breakdown; it’s just that the timescale is a little different.
February 25, 2022
Hauntingly evocative, deeply moving, and quietly sentimental - Nadia Mikail's debut novel is full of heart and hope, focusing on the deep bonds of familial love overcoming all obstacles, even ones as seemingly insurmountable as a global apocalypse.
February 6, 2022
Wow... Just wow... Absolutely phenomenal. I've not felt this much whilst reading for a long time. Mikail is an unmatched talent and I can't wait to force this book into the hands of everyone I meet from now on.
May 31, 2022
The Cats We Meet Along The Way is set in Malaysia during the last months before the Earth dies. It is an end of the world apocalypse book about Aisha and her mother on a road trip with her boyfriend and his family to find her elder sister who left home before scientists made it known that the world would be ending.
Reading this book as a Malaysian, I couldn't connect with the characters nor the surroundings. It felt like a watered-down version of Malaysia. As if you had cooked porridge for a family of 10 but it wasn't enough so you add more water towards the end but forgot to spice it, making it a bland porridge to feed everyone. At least, everyone isn't hungry anymore.
The boyfriend's name is Walter. Granted, there are many Walters in Malaysia but having this name in a Malaysian book struck me as odd. Aisha is Muslim. As a Muslim, they have to follow religious restrictions that limit physical contact in a premarital relationship. It is haram to kiss and hold hands before marriage. However, in the book, Aisha and Walter kiss on the lips and they are handsy. I don't know if Aisha's family is less strict since it wasn't explained in the book. It wasn't confirmed in the book, there were lots of clues that hinted at it but IF I'M WRONG, IGNORE THIS PART. Maybe the author was trying to not spoon-feed details to readers.
The book cover is inaccurate as well. Walter's parents bought a second-hand large campervan with an anime character painted on the outside, it is able to fit 5 people comfortably with a kitchen, sofas and bed. The vehicle shown on the book cover is inaccurate. The artist got the illustration of the colour of their adopted cat correct. Regardless, Fleabag only has one ear. On the book cover, it shows that Fleabag has two ears. I felt that the book lacked tiny fine details to bring out the Malaysianess.
This debut has a heavy melancholy nuance to it. The writing is suitable for beginners to read and it is easy to understand. As a Malaysian, I would like to see more Malaysian essence in the book. The story itself is heartfelt and straightforward. There weren't any catS in the book except one - Fleabag. My Malaysian friends who read it told me that it was misleading, they were looking forward to meeting cats during the road trip. With that being said, this book is great for Westerners if they want to get to know Malaysia a bit. It is wonderfully packed with hope, less dispair than I had imagined since the world is ending yada yada. It is truthful and a story about love. I enjoyed the little cat illustrations above each chapter, I suppose those are the cats we meet along the way ;)
Thank you to @definitely.books for sending this to me in exchange for an honest review #Pansing
Reading this book as a Malaysian, I couldn't connect with the characters nor the surroundings. It felt like a watered-down version of Malaysia. As if you had cooked porridge for a family of 10 but it wasn't enough so you add more water towards the end but forgot to spice it, making it a bland porridge to feed everyone. At least, everyone isn't hungry anymore.
The boyfriend's name is Walter. Granted, there are many Walters in Malaysia but having this name in a Malaysian book struck me as odd. Aisha is Muslim. As a Muslim, they have to follow religious restrictions that limit physical contact in a premarital relationship. It is haram to kiss and hold hands before marriage. However, in the book, Aisha and Walter kiss on the lips and they are handsy. I don't know if Aisha's family is less strict since it wasn't explained in the book. It wasn't confirmed in the book, there were lots of clues that hinted at it but IF I'M WRONG, IGNORE THIS PART. Maybe the author was trying to not spoon-feed details to readers.
The book cover is inaccurate as well. Walter's parents bought a second-hand large campervan with an anime character painted on the outside, it is able to fit 5 people comfortably with a kitchen, sofas and bed. The vehicle shown on the book cover is inaccurate. The artist got the illustration of the colour of their adopted cat correct. Regardless, Fleabag only has one ear. On the book cover, it shows that Fleabag has two ears. I felt that the book lacked tiny fine details to bring out the Malaysianess.
This debut has a heavy melancholy nuance to it. The writing is suitable for beginners to read and it is easy to understand. As a Malaysian, I would like to see more Malaysian essence in the book. The story itself is heartfelt and straightforward. There weren't any catS in the book except one - Fleabag. My Malaysian friends who read it told me that it was misleading, they were looking forward to meeting cats during the road trip. With that being said, this book is great for Westerners if they want to get to know Malaysia a bit. It is wonderfully packed with hope, less dispair than I had imagined since the world is ending yada yada. It is truthful and a story about love. I enjoyed the little cat illustrations above each chapter, I suppose those are the cats we meet along the way ;)
Thank you to @definitely.books for sending this to me in exchange for an honest review #Pansing
November 18, 2023
Dit boek gaat niet over katten
June 10, 2023
I have never felt more seen in my relationship than I did in this book, which is a little odd considering it's about the world ending.
I love that this book starts you off in the middle of Aisha's life - not only is she 2 years into a relationship, she's also a few months into the apocalypse... she and her boyfriend, Walter, were at the beach one day when an announcement came through to everyone that a meteor is projected to blow up the earth... MONTHS from now, with nothing to do to prevent it. God, it's such a terrifying concept. But we are actually far enough into it in the book that the general panic has subsided and they've sort of started to come to terms with it.
Aisha lives with her mom, and her sister used to live with them too, before she ran away. The girls' dad died when Aisha was about 10, and things just never got easier again between Aisha's sister, June, and their mom. The immediate driving story behind this book is that Aisha and her mom have decided to go out and look for June, to make up before the world ends. Walter and his parents come along, too, because why spend precious time apart when there's no time to make it up?
Aisha has so much anger in her. It sucks that her dad died, it sucks that her mom was too depressed to parent them, it sucks that her sister left her behind, it sucks that she is never going to grow old... as a teen, your whole WORLD revolves around what you're going to do when you grow up, and how you'll change, and having to be alive knowing she isn't going to get that is so CRUSHING to think about. She imagined herself growing old with Walter and having a whole life with him. They're both super bright, and they had good futures ahead of them.
The very worst part, though, is that her anger at the situation is causing her to lash out and be prickly, namely towards Walter, which is spoiling the time they do still have together. The whole concept is like, you're not going to be vulnerable with just anyone, so you let your emotions out around the person you feel safest with, and sometimes that ends up with you being upset WITH that person, and not TO them. I have dealt with this a lot in my own relationship, especially before I understood it, and it's really hard to watch Aisha go through it, even if it speaks to me a lot. She obviously doesn't WANT to be a shithead, but when she does, it makes her even angrier, feeding into the cycle. And Walter, bless his heart, he's so much like my fiance, he's an angel but he's also not going to take her acting that way, so he has to stand up to her and remind her she's not actually angry at him and it's okay to be angry but important to remember he didn't do any of it. He also has his moments of vulnerability where he peels back his happy-go-lucky veneer. It's just so, so valuable to me personally to see this dynamic and these feelings represented.
The family relationships are pretty layered and deep, considering I ALSO think that about the romantic relationship and the book clocks in at under 200 pages. I think Nadia Mikail is MAJORLY a writer to watch since I feel this connected to a story so short. Like, I feel the anguish and stress of knowing the world is ending but I also feel the resilience of not giving in and making sure you spend time doing what you want to do with those you love while you can. I have death anxiety, I've talked about it in many a review here, and this book slightly triggered it, but not as much as it could have just because it's SO realistic to like how you'd actually act if it was happening. Like, it would suck ass and you'd be mourning while you lived, but you'd just still have to keep living. The narrator does acknowledge that there are plenty of people who decided to "not make it to the end" which I think is also a pretty accurate thing. Like some people would totally just not want to be alive anymore and not want to wait around to die.
The sister/mother relationship is very important to the story and I feel like I'm downplaying that. There's a lot of hashing out old pain which I think is very useful and important, especially in a situation where it would be just as easy to pretend the drama never happened and just love each other until the end. But the star of the book to me is the dynamic between Walter and Aisha, and I'm really going to treasure this story because of it.
I love that this book starts you off in the middle of Aisha's life - not only is she 2 years into a relationship, she's also a few months into the apocalypse... she and her boyfriend, Walter, were at the beach one day when an announcement came through to everyone that a meteor is projected to blow up the earth... MONTHS from now, with nothing to do to prevent it. God, it's such a terrifying concept. But we are actually far enough into it in the book that the general panic has subsided and they've sort of started to come to terms with it.
Aisha lives with her mom, and her sister used to live with them too, before she ran away. The girls' dad died when Aisha was about 10, and things just never got easier again between Aisha's sister, June, and their mom. The immediate driving story behind this book is that Aisha and her mom have decided to go out and look for June, to make up before the world ends. Walter and his parents come along, too, because why spend precious time apart when there's no time to make it up?
Aisha has so much anger in her. It sucks that her dad died, it sucks that her mom was too depressed to parent them, it sucks that her sister left her behind, it sucks that she is never going to grow old... as a teen, your whole WORLD revolves around what you're going to do when you grow up, and how you'll change, and having to be alive knowing she isn't going to get that is so CRUSHING to think about. She imagined herself growing old with Walter and having a whole life with him. They're both super bright, and they had good futures ahead of them.
The very worst part, though, is that her anger at the situation is causing her to lash out and be prickly, namely towards Walter, which is spoiling the time they do still have together. The whole concept is like, you're not going to be vulnerable with just anyone, so you let your emotions out around the person you feel safest with, and sometimes that ends up with you being upset WITH that person, and not TO them. I have dealt with this a lot in my own relationship, especially before I understood it, and it's really hard to watch Aisha go through it, even if it speaks to me a lot. She obviously doesn't WANT to be a shithead, but when she does, it makes her even angrier, feeding into the cycle. And Walter, bless his heart, he's so much like my fiance, he's an angel but he's also not going to take her acting that way, so he has to stand up to her and remind her she's not actually angry at him and it's okay to be angry but important to remember he didn't do any of it. He also has his moments of vulnerability where he peels back his happy-go-lucky veneer. It's just so, so valuable to me personally to see this dynamic and these feelings represented.
The family relationships are pretty layered and deep, considering I ALSO think that about the romantic relationship and the book clocks in at under 200 pages. I think Nadia Mikail is MAJORLY a writer to watch since I feel this connected to a story so short. Like, I feel the anguish and stress of knowing the world is ending but I also feel the resilience of not giving in and making sure you spend time doing what you want to do with those you love while you can. I have death anxiety, I've talked about it in many a review here, and this book slightly triggered it, but not as much as it could have just because it's SO realistic to like how you'd actually act if it was happening. Like, it would suck ass and you'd be mourning while you lived, but you'd just still have to keep living. The narrator does acknowledge that there are plenty of people who decided to "not make it to the end" which I think is also a pretty accurate thing. Like some people would totally just not want to be alive anymore and not want to wait around to die.
The sister/mother relationship is very important to the story and I feel like I'm downplaying that. There's a lot of hashing out old pain which I think is very useful and important, especially in a situation where it would be just as easy to pretend the drama never happened and just love each other until the end. But the star of the book to me is the dynamic between Walter and Aisha, and I'm really going to treasure this story because of it.
October 27, 2023
This is a very sweet little book about what matters at the end of the world. Apparently, it was released in the UK as The Cats We Meet Along the Way, with a very... peppy sort of cover. It's a bit odd, and I can see why some people were confused about what they were getting involved with. There is one cat, leaving the plural titular "cats" puzzling, and the cover, while gorgeous, seems off in tone. To that end, this is marketed much better, and you will know immediately that you're in for some end of the world rumination, and perhaps one (singular) cat.
But the story itself, marketing aside, is very lovely. It's melancholy in tone, to an extent, but it is the end of the world, so I didn't exactly expect anyone to be super optimistic. We meet Aisha, whose sister June left the family home two years ago and hasn't been heard from since. Aisha has been devastated by June's absence, especially since their father died when they were young, and their mother has kind of been emotionally unavailable. But with the end of the world nigh, Aisha and her mom decide it's now or never, and they simply have to find June. Her boyfriend Walter and his parents are game, and they have an RV, so the group heads out on the search, and hope to maybe get some closure along the way.
I feel like a lot of people have complained about this book being sad but... duh? For me, it was certainly no more depressing than any other book about imminent doom, and was in fact very heartfelt in tone. Yeah, Aisha was sad about what she lost, and what she stood to lose at the end of the world. Of course she was! But there was also a lot of mending of relationships, and trying to enjoy each other's company, and making peace with the past and the potentially non-existent future. And, there are definitely still funny and quirky moments, so that you don't feel utterly down after reading. I quite enjoyed the quiet introspection of this story.
Bottom Line: It's a lovely little book about what means the most to you at the end of the world- and is also maybe a message about not waiting until the end of the world to tell someone you love them.
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
But the story itself, marketing aside, is very lovely. It's melancholy in tone, to an extent, but it is the end of the world, so I didn't exactly expect anyone to be super optimistic. We meet Aisha, whose sister June left the family home two years ago and hasn't been heard from since. Aisha has been devastated by June's absence, especially since their father died when they were young, and their mother has kind of been emotionally unavailable. But with the end of the world nigh, Aisha and her mom decide it's now or never, and they simply have to find June. Her boyfriend Walter and his parents are game, and they have an RV, so the group heads out on the search, and hope to maybe get some closure along the way.
I feel like a lot of people have complained about this book being sad but... duh? For me, it was certainly no more depressing than any other book about imminent doom, and was in fact very heartfelt in tone. Yeah, Aisha was sad about what she lost, and what she stood to lose at the end of the world. Of course she was! But there was also a lot of mending of relationships, and trying to enjoy each other's company, and making peace with the past and the potentially non-existent future. And, there are definitely still funny and quirky moments, so that you don't feel utterly down after reading. I quite enjoyed the quiet introspection of this story.
Bottom Line: It's a lovely little book about what means the most to you at the end of the world- and is also maybe a message about not waiting until the end of the world to tell someone you love them.
You can find the full review and all the fancy and/or randomness that accompanies it at It Starts at Midnight
April 22, 2022
I will be the first to admit I am not an objective reader. In fact this book, being set in Malaysia and mirroring several personal family dynamics, was always going to be something close and dear to my heart, and I refuse to be ashamed of this! Besides, there is really no such thing as an impartial reader. If a reader is impartial when reading has the book even done its job of drawing you into its world to experience the catharsis of emotion it offers? I will tell you the answer is No. I know what I'm talking about, being a professional goodreads reviewer of one book.
So we establish: I am subjective! biased, partial, predisposed, etc. But I know good writing when I read it, and I know a good story when I live it. And I have lived it- I know intimately the places Aisha grows up in, rediscovers, refolds into her heart during the span of her off-kilter, heartbreaking, tentacled camper van roadtrip to find her sister. I know the languages she uses, her mother uses, all these dialects of home. I know the love and grief and pain of family- do we all not! And it is, at its heart, a story about family. About love. About where we put our roots down and build our houses, and what we make of our homes. What we make of our lives, when we have so little time.
Personally I feel the reviews that talk about how this book doesn't offer more drama or action need to get a grip. This book is an exercise in healing and tenderness. Not to have spoilers but what makes it so keenly felt is that at the end you see the absolute futility of their efforts to save themselves. It is not about surviving. We all die in the end. It is about how despite everything the core of humanity will always be about the love and hope we have for each other.
The language for this book is simply written; it makes for a deceptively easy read that belies the depth of its emotion. We know this emotion because we feel for Aisha- every new heartbreak, every old trauma she tries to work through. When her emotions threaten to overpower her, when she touches Fleabag to bring herself- and us- back to the present, we feel it. This is the true magic of all the cats- all the losses and loves- we've met along the way. This is how we learn to care for them. This is how we learn to use them, as a touchstone, to find our way home.
Finish the book and you will have an acute sense of having recovered from some age-old ache, or a long illness. This book takes you very gently by the hand and tells you to gather your grief, and your past, and all the overflowing memories of home- and live them well.
So we establish: I am subjective! biased, partial, predisposed, etc. But I know good writing when I read it, and I know a good story when I live it. And I have lived it- I know intimately the places Aisha grows up in, rediscovers, refolds into her heart during the span of her off-kilter, heartbreaking, tentacled camper van roadtrip to find her sister. I know the languages she uses, her mother uses, all these dialects of home. I know the love and grief and pain of family- do we all not! And it is, at its heart, a story about family. About love. About where we put our roots down and build our houses, and what we make of our homes. What we make of our lives, when we have so little time.
Personally I feel the reviews that talk about how this book doesn't offer more drama or action need to get a grip. This book is an exercise in healing and tenderness. Not to have spoilers but what makes it so keenly felt is that at the end you see the absolute futility of their efforts to save themselves. It is not about surviving. We all die in the end. It is about how despite everything the core of humanity will always be about the love and hope we have for each other.
The language for this book is simply written; it makes for a deceptively easy read that belies the depth of its emotion. We know this emotion because we feel for Aisha- every new heartbreak, every old trauma she tries to work through. When her emotions threaten to overpower her, when she touches Fleabag to bring herself- and us- back to the present, we feel it. This is the true magic of all the cats- all the losses and loves- we've met along the way. This is how we learn to care for them. This is how we learn to use them, as a touchstone, to find our way home.
Finish the book and you will have an acute sense of having recovered from some age-old ache, or a long illness. This book takes you very gently by the hand and tells you to gather your grief, and your past, and all the overflowing memories of home- and live them well.
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December 11, 2025Eine Sterne-Bewertung fällt mir sehr schwer, deswegen verzichte ich mal darauf. Das Buch hat mich auf sehr besondere Weise berührt. Obwohl schnörkellos und recht einfach geschrieben, tut das dem Inhalt keinerlei Abbruch - ich würde eher sagen, hier wird mit klarer, direkter Sprache gearbeitet. Ich bin nur ein kleines bisschen enttäuscht, dass der Titel etwas irreführend ist, weil die Protagonisten genau eine Katze treffen /D Aber das kann ich verzeihen. Die Geschichte ist absolut lesenswert.
July 17, 2025
Aisha ist 17 und lebt in der nahen Zukunft auf der malaysischen Insel Penang. Die Stimmung in der kleinen Familie ist gedrückt, weil die Mutter über wichtige Erlebnisse schweigt und die ältere Schwester June zuerst eine Europareise ertrotzte und vor 3 Jahren ganz verschwunden ist. Aisha fühlt sich benachteiligt, weil June sich ihre Freiheit genommen und für Aisha nichts mehr zu ertrotzen übrig gelassen hat. Da in neun Monaten ein Meteorit auf die Erde treffen wird, wird es höchste Zeit, June zu suchen. Die Menschen haben sich bereits auf das Ende der Welt eingestellt, einige gaben ihre bezahlten Arbeitsstellen auf, kümmern sich freiwillig um einander und den Anbau von Lebensmitteln. Manche graben Bunker. Mit Unterstützung von Aishas absolut liebenswertem Freund Walter werden Mutter, Tochter, Walter und dessen Eltern mit einem VW-Bus an die Orte reisen, von denen sich die Familie bisher nicht richtig verabschieden konnte: den Heimatort der Eltern Kuching auf der Insel Sarawak, Kuala Lumpur, wo Esah und Arif sich kennenlernten, Ipoh, das Walters Eltern etwas bedeutet, und Melaka, wo Aisha hofft, im Haus ihrer verstorbenen Großeltern June zu treffen. Denn wo sollte June sonst sein? Nur wenige Jahre nach den Großeltern war Aishas Vater Arif gestorben, mit der Folge, dass Mutter Esah mit den Töchtern nach Penang zog, um einen möglichst großen Abstand zwischen Gegenwart und Erinnerung zu legen. In Penang wartet eine Überraschung auf die Reisenden, aber auch auf Nadia Mikails Lerser:innen, die von diesem erstaunlichen Jugendroman ein humorvolles Roadmovie erwartet haben könnten …
Neben dem dezent am Rand zu spürenden Zusammenleben in einem Vielvölkerstaat, dessen Alltag einiges Fingerspitzengefühl voraussetzt, entpuppt sich das Buch im feuerroten Cover samt curryfarbenem Kater „Flohsack“ als komplexes, ernstes Buch über Heimat, Verluste, Trauer und die Unfähigkeit, mit seinen liebsten Menschen darüber zu sprechen. Komplex für ein Jugendbuch finde ich die Zeitebenen, auf denen Nadia Mikail erzählt, wie Aisha/“Sha“ und Walter sich kennenlernen, wie Großeltern und Aishas Vater sterben, die VW-Bus-Fahrt der Gegenwart und eine geträumte, hypothetische Zukunft, in der die Figuren noch am Leben wären. Letztlich geht es um Heilung, darum, dass Trauer einen Ort braucht und niemand tot ist, über den noch Geschichten erzählt werden.
Handwerklich ist das Buch eine Klappenbroschur mit Landkarte in der vorderen Klappe, in großer lesefreundlicher Schrift und sehr kurzen Kapiteln. Den VW-Bus, in dem fünf Erwachsene übernachten, zähle ich als VW-Bus-Fan ebenso zum utopischen Anteil des Buches wie die Katzen (in der Mehrzahl). Katzen-Fans könnten enttäuscht sein. Ich hoffe, dass die endgültige Ausgabe, die in den Handel kommt, ein Verzeichnis der malaiischen Ausdrücke haben wird, die einfach dazugehören. Zum Vorlesen, Verschenken, für Jugendliche, Erwachsene wie Literaturgruppen empfohlen, für all die Leser:innen, die eine „hypothetische Zukunft“ aushalten.
Neben dem dezent am Rand zu spürenden Zusammenleben in einem Vielvölkerstaat, dessen Alltag einiges Fingerspitzengefühl voraussetzt, entpuppt sich das Buch im feuerroten Cover samt curryfarbenem Kater „Flohsack“ als komplexes, ernstes Buch über Heimat, Verluste, Trauer und die Unfähigkeit, mit seinen liebsten Menschen darüber zu sprechen. Komplex für ein Jugendbuch finde ich die Zeitebenen, auf denen Nadia Mikail erzählt, wie Aisha/“Sha“ und Walter sich kennenlernen, wie Großeltern und Aishas Vater sterben, die VW-Bus-Fahrt der Gegenwart und eine geträumte, hypothetische Zukunft, in der die Figuren noch am Leben wären. Letztlich geht es um Heilung, darum, dass Trauer einen Ort braucht und niemand tot ist, über den noch Geschichten erzählt werden.
Handwerklich ist das Buch eine Klappenbroschur mit Landkarte in der vorderen Klappe, in großer lesefreundlicher Schrift und sehr kurzen Kapiteln. Den VW-Bus, in dem fünf Erwachsene übernachten, zähle ich als VW-Bus-Fan ebenso zum utopischen Anteil des Buches wie die Katzen (in der Mehrzahl). Katzen-Fans könnten enttäuscht sein. Ich hoffe, dass die endgültige Ausgabe, die in den Handel kommt, ein Verzeichnis der malaiischen Ausdrücke haben wird, die einfach dazugehören. Zum Vorlesen, Verschenken, für Jugendliche, Erwachsene wie Literaturgruppen empfohlen, für all die Leser:innen, die eine „hypothetische Zukunft“ aushalten.
August 25, 2023
Honestly this book left me confused in all sorts of ways. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t dislike it, but it was not at all what I expected and in parts felt a lil wish-washy? Usually after reading a book I think about it quite a lot in the following days, but with this I just felt… nothing? Which wouldn’t strike me as that odd if I didn’t enjoy the book, but I did. I just didn’t seem to feel any type of way about it - I picked it up, I read it, I moved on, and I just like my reads to have a little more ‘oomph’ about them. Usually for kids/YA books I’d forgive this, but despite the target audience I found it really unclear who this book was actually written for. PLUS I spent 90% of my time reading this looking forward to meeting more cats - plz don’t title a book ‘The Cats We Meet Along The Way’ if there’s only one cat and he’s not particularly relevant to the story :(
March 28, 2023
Not impressed. This book never really got going. I read to the end in the hope it would get better but it didn't. A really disappointing read and I'm not certain it's worthy of the Waterstones children's book prize. I don't get it!
January 25, 2023
You know when you read a book and feel like it was meant for you at that very moment ? Yeah that’s what reading this felt like
July 30, 2024
Oh dear! Even short as it is, this was interminable for me. I don't know whether it was the dry, slow-paced and uninspiring writing, or the over-earnest and plodding narration.
January 22, 2024
Beautiful, innocent, insightful, with a dusting of tragedy and a wonderful tone of hope, no matter what. A tale of love and siblings and family, this was everything that Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow should have been and wasn’t. Faint hints of Durrell’s My Family and Other Animals, and beautifully Ghibli in colour and feel. Emotionally driven and almost dreamlike, with the threat of the end hanging over its gentleness, and yet the absolute reassurance that life goes on.
February 3, 2024
"Here, in the night sky, these words wound themselves up into the stars, and the stars would keep them, and the stars would tell the waves, and the waves would come in, come out, come in again, even after they were gone. And even if that meant nothing, and these stories did not live, the lived NOW."
July 9, 2025
Still an enjoyable read eventhough it didnt meet my expectation.
I dont see any cats except Fleabag (their stray cat) along the way they (Aisha, Walter, Esah and Walter’s parents) to find her sister, June.
I thought there’s will be more cats here. It felt like the title was scam me 🤣 (I repeat, JUST the one cat)
But, honestly i love the premise, the idea and the character.
I dont see any cats except Fleabag (their stray cat) along the way they (Aisha, Walter, Esah and Walter’s parents) to find her sister, June.
I thought there’s will be more cats here. It felt like the title was scam me 🤣 (I repeat, JUST the one cat)
But, honestly i love the premise, the idea and the character.
September 1, 2024
Um, this book only had one cat in it? I liked the themes, but it could have done with more editing. To be honest, the plot felt weak to me, very much a first novel. But amazing it did so well. I guess the young people know what the young people want.
January 16, 2025
*2,5 ⭐️
August 12, 2024
Experimenting with new books always comes at a cost!
Sometimes we enjoy them, but other times I feel I am not so sure. This is the story when the world is about to end and the next generation may not live their entire lifespan. Toppled in this situation is a family whose elder daughter has been missing for 3 years & they finally think it's time to go & find her. The journey starts with a homely neighbour accompanying them & a cat who loves attention.
It unfolds into a tightly knit world with few main characters that carry their own emotional baggage. On this journey, we understand the power of letting go, forgiveness & what really matters when the end is so near. The writing style was simplistic but I felt a few added layers would have made the story much more impactful to an avid reader.
It felt like a travelogue of family reconciliation which needed a little more exuberance to outshine the inevitable doom.
Sometimes we enjoy them, but other times I feel I am not so sure. This is the story when the world is about to end and the next generation may not live their entire lifespan. Toppled in this situation is a family whose elder daughter has been missing for 3 years & they finally think it's time to go & find her. The journey starts with a homely neighbour accompanying them & a cat who loves attention.
It unfolds into a tightly knit world with few main characters that carry their own emotional baggage. On this journey, we understand the power of letting go, forgiveness & what really matters when the end is so near. The writing style was simplistic but I felt a few added layers would have made the story much more impactful to an avid reader.
It felt like a travelogue of family reconciliation which needed a little more exuberance to outshine the inevitable doom.
March 6, 2024
Terrible don't read it turn back now it's too confusing it's the worst book I've read. Too many characters!
April 19, 2023
Ceux qu’on rencontre en chemin est un roman tranche de vie, sur le pardon, la colère, l’acceptation et quelque peu sur le deuil.
C’est un très beau roman jeunesse / YA qui tend à ouvrir son esprit.
Dans un univers où la vie s’arrêtera dans 8 mois suite à une catastrophe naturelle, nous sommes aux côtés d’Aisha, une jeune fille de 17 ans, qui a conscience qu’elle n’a plus sa vie devant elle.
Alors que ses jours sont comptés, elle et sa mère décide de partir à la recherche de sa sœur, partie du foyer familial il y’a maintenant 3 ans…
Entre colère, peur et acceptation, Aisha apprend à gérer ses émotions et a appréhendé cet avenir pourtant si court.
Globalement, j’ai apprécié cette lecture. Le rythme est fluide, les chapitres sont courts et entraînant. J’aime beaucoup cet aspect « tranche de vie » qu’on retrouve dans ce roman, il n’y a pas de « suspens » a proprement parlé, et c’est agréable de se poser et juste lire, lire l’histoire de la vie d’Aisha et de sa quête.
C’est le premier roman de Nadia Mikail, une jeune femme talentueuse, et qui écrit merveilleusement bien, j’ai ressenti beaucoup d’émotions en lisant ce livre.
Malgré tout, je reste un peu sceptique quant à la fin, j’aurais peut-être préférée une fin différente de celle-ci, qui mène à réfléchir sur un tas de choses.
Je recommande beaucoup ce livre pour des adolescents. C’est un très beau livre, riche en ressentis, et surtout, avec un petit chat couleur curry qui compte bien faire sa petite place au sein de cette famille!
C’est un très beau roman jeunesse / YA qui tend à ouvrir son esprit.
Dans un univers où la vie s’arrêtera dans 8 mois suite à une catastrophe naturelle, nous sommes aux côtés d’Aisha, une jeune fille de 17 ans, qui a conscience qu’elle n’a plus sa vie devant elle.
Alors que ses jours sont comptés, elle et sa mère décide de partir à la recherche de sa sœur, partie du foyer familial il y’a maintenant 3 ans…
Entre colère, peur et acceptation, Aisha apprend à gérer ses émotions et a appréhendé cet avenir pourtant si court.
Globalement, j’ai apprécié cette lecture. Le rythme est fluide, les chapitres sont courts et entraînant. J’aime beaucoup cet aspect « tranche de vie » qu’on retrouve dans ce roman, il n’y a pas de « suspens » a proprement parlé, et c’est agréable de se poser et juste lire, lire l’histoire de la vie d’Aisha et de sa quête.
C’est le premier roman de Nadia Mikail, une jeune femme talentueuse, et qui écrit merveilleusement bien, j’ai ressenti beaucoup d’émotions en lisant ce livre.
Malgré tout, je reste un peu sceptique quant à la fin, j’aurais peut-être préférée une fin différente de celle-ci, qui mène à réfléchir sur un tas de choses.
Je recommande beaucoup ce livre pour des adolescents. C’est un très beau livre, riche en ressentis, et surtout, avec un petit chat couleur curry qui compte bien faire sa petite place au sein de cette famille!
January 13, 2025
Book: The Cats We Meet Along The Way
Author: Nadia Mikal
Rating: 3.9 stars.
This book is about two boyfriend and girlfriend families, living in Malaysia, and the end of the world is closing in on their future. Aisha, the main character, needs to discover her emotions and brave through them. Her sister runs away from home, which leaves Aisha and her mum in dispair as her grandparents and father passed away. Alisha's sister finds a young boy who lost his mother to sickness and they try to dig a bunker so they don't die. Soon, Aisha and Walter and their families go looking for June, her sister to face the past and the future. I didn't like the ending as it wasn't finished, it just left you with a gap. And it's not even a series. It felt a bit pointless because of the ending, like what's the point of reading anything other than the main story? It was a sweet, selfhelping book. And an easy light read!
Author: Nadia Mikal
Rating: 3.9 stars.
This book is about two boyfriend and girlfriend families, living in Malaysia, and the end of the world is closing in on their future. Aisha, the main character, needs to discover her emotions and brave through them. Her sister runs away from home, which leaves Aisha and her mum in dispair as her grandparents and father passed away. Alisha's sister finds a young boy who lost his mother to sickness and they try to dig a bunker so they don't die. Soon, Aisha and Walter and their families go looking for June, her sister to face the past and the future. I didn't like the ending as it wasn't finished, it just left you with a gap. And it's not even a series. It felt a bit pointless because of the ending, like what's the point of reading anything other than the main story? It was a sweet, selfhelping book. And an easy light read!
November 5, 2021
The Cats We Meet Along the Way is a stunning and gripping debut. Mikail's writing is so refreshing and honest. She dives deep into the characters emotions and depicts them perfectly, which is not something many authors can do. The setting was perfect, and I loved the map at the beginning of the book and the small illustrations inside it.
I am excited to see what the future holds for Mikail and to read her other books. I am positive The Cats We Meet Along the Way will be a great success amongst children and parents, and that they will love it as much as I did.
I am excited to see what the future holds for Mikail and to read her other books. I am positive The Cats We Meet Along the Way will be a great success amongst children and parents, and that they will love it as much as I did.
June 12, 2022
This book was such a cute, emotional but feel good ride! Literally.
It was full of love, hope and bitter sweetness. I loved the characters although I found Aisha a little annoying at times or found that she missed a bit of personality.
The book was a very fun and short read which has the perfect summer vibes, even though it is about the ending of the world and to reunite with friends and family in difficult times. It still was very lighthearted and refreshing.
It was full of love, hope and bitter sweetness. I loved the characters although I found Aisha a little annoying at times or found that she missed a bit of personality.
The book was a very fun and short read which has the perfect summer vibes, even though it is about the ending of the world and to reunite with friends and family in difficult times. It still was very lighthearted and refreshing.
May 1, 2023
Ebook.
Well. This was a surprise. Wonderfully written, has all the right feels, yanks at the heartstrings at some parts. Would have been a 4 star read if not for that ending.
But no. It's not about cats. There is ONE cat, and well, the story's really not about him either. Am I the only one thinking the title should be something else?
Well. This was a surprise. Wonderfully written, has all the right feels, yanks at the heartstrings at some parts. Would have been a 4 star read if not for that ending.
But no. It's not about cats. There is ONE cat, and well, the story's really not about him either. Am I the only one thinking the title should be something else?
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