Purr Prints of the Heart - A Cat's Tale of Life, Death, and Beyond

by Deborah Barnes

Deborah and her beloved cat Ragdoll cat, Mr. Jazz, spent a lifetime together. The bond they shared was special – he was her companion through the best and worst of it all. So when the inevitable happened – the realization he was dying at 15 years of age and she would have to face the painful and difficult decision of helping to let him go, their relationship changed, causing Deborah to learn some invaluable lessons from him about life, love, grieving, and letting go.

Told by Mr. Jazz himself, an ordinary cat by his own admission, Purr Prints of the Heart is a touching meow-memoir that will strike a chord with anyone whose heart carries purr prints of love as he shares the story of his life from kitten hood to his final days on earth in the physical sense. Cleverly written in cat likeness with incredible insight, candor, charm, wisdom, and humor, Mr. Jazz takes the reader on a journey that is like a salve in book form to offer comfort to all who have had to deal with (or will have to deal with), the inevitable loss of a beloved pet.

Replete with memorable moments of anticipation, outbursts of laughter, sighs of relief, sheer joy, and throes of grief, Mr. Jazz, carries a conversation with readers, putting them in real-life situations they can easily relate to and empathize with - from his days as a kitten that nobody wanted, to finally being adopted into a loving human and animal filled family that had its share of ups and
downs, to his final months whereby his health was declining and he had to deal with things like frequent visits to the vet, being force fed food, resentment issues, litter issues, and the finality of coming to terms with the fact he was dying and needing to convince his beloved humans to let him go .

The ending is a welcoming upturn, a refreshing reminder of the celebration of life and the indelible purr prints cats leave on our hearts and includes an invaluable “Coping With Pet Loss” section to help readers on all levels - emotionally, mentally, spiritually, and even physically to empower themselves with ways to positively honor the journey of the pet lost as well as ways to find the strength to heal and mend a broken heart.

Genres: Animals

186 pages, Paperback

First published March 27, 2015

About the author

Deborah Barnes resides in the tropical paradise of South Florida with her fiancé and feline family of seven. She is the author of the 5-star rated books, The Chronicles of Zee & Zoey – A Journey of the Extraordinarily Ordinary and Purr Prints of the Heart - A Cat's Tale of Life, Death, and Beyond as well as the award winning blog, Zee & Zoey’s Cat Chronicles that continues to cover the everyday journey she shares with her cats along with topics from the humorous behaviors of cats to very serious subjects on pet responsibility. Deborah was awarded 2013 “Writer of the Year” by Friskies Purina on behalf of the Cat Writers’ Association and she is also the Secretary of the nonprofit, Pawsitively Humane, Inc. of Miami, Florida, whose mission is to create public awareness and reduce the numbers of animals on the streets and in shelters through an extensive educational campaign.

Reviews

[Dawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was a lucky winner of this great book here on Goodreads by the author, Deborah Barnes. I feel this book chose me as it came into my life at the perfect time. I laughed, I cried, I shook my head in agreement with so much of it. The story of Mr Jazz is such a beautiful story and loving tribute to a beloved pet.

My husband and I are both huge cat lovers. We have 7 ranging in ages from 20 months to 18 years old, all of which were rescued. They each bring a special bit of joy to our lives. I have not gone through this experience of one crossing the Rainbow Bridge but as much as I don't want it to happen I know it's coming.

This book is a treasure that I know I will go back to and read again. And I'm sure the Coping with Pet Loss section at the end will be a big help.

UPDATE: Since I first wrote this review almost two years ago I have now experienced the loss of 2 of our furry children just a few months apart. It was a very sad time but I wouldn't have wanted to not experience it because I wouldn't have had all the joy in the years before to look back on and be blessed with. I have remembered parts in this book several times over the last year as we have missed our cats who have crossed the Rainow Bridge. Our two-legged children have grown and moved on and we now have these 5 very loved and spoiled four-legged kids. They always bring a smile to my day.

You can find this review with some others at: https://mcdawnreviews.wordpress.com/2...

Thank you again Deborah for sharing Mr Jazz's story and laying your heart out there for all the world to see.

[Lisa Gerardy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Purr Prints of the Heart is told from Jazz the cat's point of view. He tells us humans that helping a pet cross the rainbow bridge is the kind and expected thing to do. According to Jazz, pets actually ask to cross.

Having just lost my Morris cat in November, and having lost another cat and a dog in the past few years, reading this book was very helpful. I cried like a baby during some parts. My cat Boo, jumped on my lap to comfort me while I was reading about Jazz's final days.

Anyone who has lost a pet should read this book. Heck, anyone who HAS pets should read it.

[Merceda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. I was crying at the end of the book. I didn't want Mr. Jazz to cross over, but it was his time. I really liked that he was the one narrating the book. I liked that he also showed up when Deb needed to be told something.

[Mallory Albeck · Rating 5 out of 5]

So cute!

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Third time I have read this book and still cried. I am sure sometime in the future I will read it again.

[Patricia · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have read this book twice and cried both times. Brought back memories of when I lost my first Ragdoll. I am haunted to this day for not letting him go sooner. I will never force feed another cat. His last memory of me is taking him out from under a bookcase to syringe feed him and he has a seizure and let out a piercing cry then went limp in my arms. I can't forgive myself. He died from FIP at 15 months old.