遗失了一只猫

by Jimmy Liao, 几米

昨夜的梦还未醒，今夜的梦又来袭，真的，假的，我也分不清。星期天的早晨，有人在歌唱，我醒来又睡去。歌声从苍白的天花板里传来，从枯萎的玫瑰花丛传来；歌声从滴水的冷气孔中传来，从叹气的闹钟里传来，歌声从幽黯的森林里传来，从起雾的海边传来。
我在城市里老是醒不来，翻翻覆覆又睡了。是你在唱歌吗？走音了。
我的猫，在我昏沉中，悄悄离家出走了。

72 pages, Paperback

First published October 1, 2004

About the author

Jimmy Liao (pen name: 幾米；autonym: Lao Fu-Bin, 廖福彬) born in Yilan County, Taiwan. in Fine Arts, with a major in Design. He had worked in advertising companies for 12 years. Now he works as an illustrator. Since 1998, Jimmy published several illustrated books with amazing originality and multi-faceted narratives. He had since set a fashion in creating and publishing illustrated books in local and international markets. Utilizing images as a refreshing form of literary language, Jimmy creates in his works poetic frames that emit charms and appeals. He has published seventeenth popular books so far, and they are translated into English, French, German, Greek, Japanese, Korean and so forth. Being the most popular illustrator author in Asia, creating lots of fantasy and touch hearts cross all generation, however, with low profile personality, he enjoys the family time more, lives a tranquil life and devotes most of his time to work. Immersing in his works is just like to go into Jimmy's inner world, his inviting stories reflect the reality of real life, more and more people are intoxicated by his vivid strokes and his magic realism narratives. Now in Asia, Jimmy becomes vogue of the time, beyond his stories, "Jimmy" is like a pop of a new life style.

from: http://www.jimmyspa.com/en/

Reviews

[mimo · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy reading books by 几米.* The words are simple yet full of meaning, while the illustrations accompanying them quietly add to the story and atmosphere. Here, for instance, the text follows the woman while the pictures depict her cat. Both are exploring the city and making new friends. When the cat finally finds its way home to her, the woman has ridden out the temporary upheaval in her life (caused by the loss of her relationship and her pet) and become more comfortable with who she is and can be.

I backspaced and tweaked that sentence many times. It still feels clunky. I think that's the charm of these tales for me - so much goes so elegantly unsaid.

*I can read Chinese much more fluently than I can write in it, hence the review in English.

[Gabriela · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pensé que iba a ser algo tierno, pero fue triste y bastante.

Y el libro y las ilustraciones están preciosas, así que valió la pena el dinero gastado (que fue harto).

[Cat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro me cautivó completamente, lo empecé a leer por las ilustraciones coloridas y muy detalladas de gatitos en todo tipo de situaciones, pero la historia me impresionó mucho, es una reflexión inusualmente profunda y un poco oscura sobre la depresión para tratarse de un libro ilustrado. Es fascinante, lo recomiendo.

[Ambar Mendez · Rating 2 out of 5]

No me gusto, porque es mucho relleno para que casi en en final los vecinos le digan que sí vieron a su gato siendo que ella preguntaba si lo vieron o no. Las ilustraciones son lindas pero no tienen sentido.

[Paula · Rating 5 out of 5]

Primer libro del año y va sobre lo que hay en mis tripas.

[becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

Desaparece el gato del narrador. Trata la crudeza del duelo por una mascota, todo el dolor y la extraña esperanza inconsciente de que vuelva a estar a nuestro lado.

[Gisse · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

[Erika HerO✨ · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sentí que la historia no logra sostenerse a lo largo de todas sus páginas. La idea es bonita, pero algo repetitiva.

[Adelaida · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

[Madteapartier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I haven't read this book per se, because I cannot read Mandarin, but I own it & love the illustrations.

[Jennifer B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful illustrations, and I liked the prose as well. All cat lovers would love this.