What do you think?
Rate this book
Feline Frolics #1
Cats in the Belfry
You won’t find another book about cats as funny as this one! For cat lovers old and new – particularly those whose lives are ruled by their feline friends!
When Doreen Tovey brought home her first Siamese kitten she had no idea what she was letting herself in for…
Animal lovers Doreen and Charles Tovey were used to opening their doors to various pets: from Shorty, their highly-strung budgerigar to Blondin, a mischievous squirrel.
One animal they had never owned was cats, but when their country home became overrun with mice they decide to bring in a kitten.
But Siamese pedigrees are not like normal cats…
Before long Doreen’s world is turned upside down by the new arrival, and from that moment on she never looked back...
CATS IN THE BELFRY is the first of Doreen Tovey’s memoirs about living with Siamese cats: set in the British countryside, it is told with wit, mischief, and above all humour.
‘The most enchanting cat book ever’ - Jilly Cooper
‘If there is a funnier book about cats I for one do not want to read it. I would hurt myself laughing, might even die of laughter’ – The Scotsman
‘expect to laugh out loud, shed a few tears and be totally captivated by Doreen’s stories of her playful and often naughty Siamese cats’ – Your Cat Magazine
'This is a funny and poignant reflection of life with that most beautiful, elegant, and haughty of felines.'- The Good Book Guide
‘Doreen has a wonderful, warm, and witty way with words that bring the personality of each cat to life and perfectly describe her love of them.’ - Life With Siamese Cats
‘A chaotic, hilarious and heart-wrenching love affair with the most characterful of feline breeds’ – The People’s Friend
‘A book for those whose world is bounded and ruled by cats; even those who can take-them-or-leave-them will find a generous serving of amusement here’ - Kirkus Review
‘Every so often, there comes along a book — or if you’re lucky books — which gladdens the heart, cheers the soul… Just such books are those written by Doreen Tovey’ – Cat World
‘A warm, witty and moving cat classic. A must for all cat lovers’ – Living For Retirement
FELINE FROLICS SERIES
Book One: Cats in the Belfry
Book Two: Cats in May
Book Three: Donkey Work
Book Four: Raining Cats and Donkeys
Book Five: The New Boy
Book Six: Double Trouble
Book Seven: The Coming of Saska
Book Eight: A Comfort of Cats
Book Nine: More Cats in the Belfry
When Doreen Tovey brought home her first Siamese kitten she had no idea what she was letting herself in for…
Animal lovers Doreen and Charles Tovey were used to opening their doors to various pets: from Shorty, their highly-strung budgerigar to Blondin, a mischievous squirrel.
One animal they had never owned was cats, but when their country home became overrun with mice they decide to bring in a kitten.
But Siamese pedigrees are not like normal cats…
Before long Doreen’s world is turned upside down by the new arrival, and from that moment on she never looked back...
CATS IN THE BELFRY is the first of Doreen Tovey’s memoirs about living with Siamese cats: set in the British countryside, it is told with wit, mischief, and above all humour.
‘The most enchanting cat book ever’ - Jilly Cooper
‘If there is a funnier book about cats I for one do not want to read it. I would hurt myself laughing, might even die of laughter’ – The Scotsman
‘expect to laugh out loud, shed a few tears and be totally captivated by Doreen’s stories of her playful and often naughty Siamese cats’ – Your Cat Magazine
'This is a funny and poignant reflection of life with that most beautiful, elegant, and haughty of felines.'- The Good Book Guide
‘Doreen has a wonderful, warm, and witty way with words that bring the personality of each cat to life and perfectly describe her love of them.’ - Life With Siamese Cats
‘A chaotic, hilarious and heart-wrenching love affair with the most characterful of feline breeds’ – The People’s Friend
‘A book for those whose world is bounded and ruled by cats; even those who can take-them-or-leave-them will find a generous serving of amusement here’ - Kirkus Review
‘Every so often, there comes along a book — or if you’re lucky books — which gladdens the heart, cheers the soul… Just such books are those written by Doreen Tovey’ – Cat World
‘A warm, witty and moving cat classic. A must for all cat lovers’ – Living For Retirement
FELINE FROLICS SERIES
Book One: Cats in the Belfry
Book Two: Cats in May
Book Three: Donkey Work
Book Four: Raining Cats and Donkeys
Book Five: The New Boy
Book Six: Double Trouble
Book Seven: The Coming of Saska
Book Eight: A Comfort of Cats
Book Nine: More Cats in the Belfry
252 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1957
288 people are currently reading
818 people want to read
About the author
Doreen Tovey
21 books33 followersDoreen was born in Bristol on 24 October 1918. At this time a flu epidemic was raging and her mother died from this leaving her two week old daughter to be brought up by her Grandmother, as her father, being an engineer, was away from home for long periods of time.
It was this upbringing that introduced Doreen to a variety of pets, as Grandmother was an inveterate rescuer of anything in need.
Together with her Aunt Louisa they shared a house with cats, dogs and an owl called Gladstone whose perch on the bathroom door dictated that the use of this room was a swift one as no heat could be kept inside with the continually open door.
Doreen went to Grammar School and passed her matric (as it was called then), she would have loved to go to university but knew her grandmother could never have afforded it.
After a couple of boring jobs she joined Imperial Tobacco and was with them for many years. Starting as a typist, then a secretary and, when they discovered that she could write, in their public relations department.
It was here that she met Rene, who was in the Accountants Department. They met on the staircase one day and six months later Rene went to war in the Royal Navy.
Rene came home on leave and they were married in Bristol by special licence on a Monday afternoon and spent a two-day honeymoon on a farm and Rene went back to war.
She spent most of the time Rene was away with her Aunt Louisa who made life quite fun for Doreen after the austerity of her Victorian grandmother, who loved her dearly but had set ideas how a young lady should be brought up.
Two and a half years later Rene was on his way home. His convoy coming via the Cape to avoid the still roaming enemy submarines, the war was still on and he was sent to London where Doreen was transferred to be with him. He was then posted to a shore station in the West Country and Doreen and Rene set about to find their dream cottage. They rented a very dilapidated ex public house with an earth closet, the dream cottage put on hold, both back working in Bristol for their old firm, Doreen now as their statistical librarian, writing reports that were read by the Board. A job normally only considered for a man.
After a couple of further moves, a Georgian relic and a happy period in a farm, they found the perfect place at Rowberrow, Somerset. They had also found a baby squirrel, which had fallen from its drey and Rene refused to climb the thirty feet necessary to return the little bedraggled mite to its nest. So Blondin became part of the Tovey family and unwittingly the reason Doreen and Rene got their first Siamese cat, Sugieh.
Blondin was a hoarder and the cottage soon became infested with mice looking for Blondin’s nuts and pieces of bread that he had stuffed under cushions and carpets for his rainy day. Whilst the mice had plenty to eat they did not cause too many problems but when Blondin caught a chill and died, their supply died too and they took to eating anything and everything. Doreen decided to get a cat and having seen a neighbour’s Siamese out for a stroll one day on a rather fetching collar and lead, decided that a Siamese would be the answer, she could also have a litter and maybe raise the Tovey finances.
Sugieh produced a litter of four kittens. Doreen decided that one’s fortune was not going to be made that way and when Sugeih died whilst being spayed (a far less straightforward procedure in the mid 1950s than it is today), decided to keep a sealpointed boy called Solomon and his bluepointed sister Sheba.
The antics of these kittens, a donkey called Annabel and the following Siamese inmates of The White Cottage were to bring Doreen world wide recognition of her books and writings, starting with ‘Cats In The Belfry’ published in 1957. The Canadian Government sponsored her and Rene on a trip to the Rockies to write about the Canadian Wildlife, with special focus on Grizzly bears. This trip can be read about in ‘The Co
It was this upbringing that introduced Doreen to a variety of pets, as Grandmother was an inveterate rescuer of anything in need.
Together with her Aunt Louisa they shared a house with cats, dogs and an owl called Gladstone whose perch on the bathroom door dictated that the use of this room was a swift one as no heat could be kept inside with the continually open door.
Doreen went to Grammar School and passed her matric (as it was called then), she would have loved to go to university but knew her grandmother could never have afforded it.
After a couple of boring jobs she joined Imperial Tobacco and was with them for many years. Starting as a typist, then a secretary and, when they discovered that she could write, in their public relations department.
It was here that she met Rene, who was in the Accountants Department. They met on the staircase one day and six months later Rene went to war in the Royal Navy.
Rene came home on leave and they were married in Bristol by special licence on a Monday afternoon and spent a two-day honeymoon on a farm and Rene went back to war.
She spent most of the time Rene was away with her Aunt Louisa who made life quite fun for Doreen after the austerity of her Victorian grandmother, who loved her dearly but had set ideas how a young lady should be brought up.
Two and a half years later Rene was on his way home. His convoy coming via the Cape to avoid the still roaming enemy submarines, the war was still on and he was sent to London where Doreen was transferred to be with him. He was then posted to a shore station in the West Country and Doreen and Rene set about to find their dream cottage. They rented a very dilapidated ex public house with an earth closet, the dream cottage put on hold, both back working in Bristol for their old firm, Doreen now as their statistical librarian, writing reports that were read by the Board. A job normally only considered for a man.
After a couple of further moves, a Georgian relic and a happy period in a farm, they found the perfect place at Rowberrow, Somerset. They had also found a baby squirrel, which had fallen from its drey and Rene refused to climb the thirty feet necessary to return the little bedraggled mite to its nest. So Blondin became part of the Tovey family and unwittingly the reason Doreen and Rene got their first Siamese cat, Sugieh.
Blondin was a hoarder and the cottage soon became infested with mice looking for Blondin’s nuts and pieces of bread that he had stuffed under cushions and carpets for his rainy day. Whilst the mice had plenty to eat they did not cause too many problems but when Blondin caught a chill and died, their supply died too and they took to eating anything and everything. Doreen decided to get a cat and having seen a neighbour’s Siamese out for a stroll one day on a rather fetching collar and lead, decided that a Siamese would be the answer, she could also have a litter and maybe raise the Tovey finances.
Sugieh produced a litter of four kittens. Doreen decided that one’s fortune was not going to be made that way and when Sugeih died whilst being spayed (a far less straightforward procedure in the mid 1950s than it is today), decided to keep a sealpointed boy called Solomon and his bluepointed sister Sheba.
The antics of these kittens, a donkey called Annabel and the following Siamese inmates of The White Cottage were to bring Doreen world wide recognition of her books and writings, starting with ‘Cats In The Belfry’ published in 1957. The Canadian Government sponsored her and Rene on a trip to the Rockies to write about the Canadian Wildlife, with special focus on Grizzly bears. This trip can be read about in ‘The Co
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 100 reviews
December 22, 2018
I love all of Doreen Tovey's books. This was her first one, originally published in 1957. Doreen has an amusing way of writing that perfectly captures the personalities of her Siamese cats. She, and her husband, Charles (real name is Rene), are truly 'owned' by their cats. The book starts out with their acquiring Sugieh, as a kitten. She grows up to have a litter of her own, and more madness ensues, of course.
They live in a cottage in Rowberrow, which is a small village in Somerset, England. The kind of place where everyone knows everyone else ... and all the antics they get up to. Because of the peculiar paces their Siamese put them through, the Toveys are seen by village folk as being a bit 'different'.
If you enjoy true cat stories told by an author who knows exactly how to tell them, you'll probably enjoy Doreen's books. I do. I've read this one at least 3 times ... which is high praise, as I very seldom re-read my books.
5 Stars = Exceptional. It made a significant impact.
They live in a cottage in Rowberrow, which is a small village in Somerset, England. The kind of place where everyone knows everyone else ... and all the antics they get up to. Because of the peculiar paces their Siamese put them through, the Toveys are seen by village folk as being a bit 'different'.
If you enjoy true cat stories told by an author who knows exactly how to tell them, you'll probably enjoy Doreen's books. I do. I've read this one at least 3 times ... which is high praise, as I very seldom re-read my books.
5 Stars = Exceptional. It made a significant impact.
February 20, 2017
Do you think your cat is noisy and troublesome? Be thankful you don’t have Doreen Tovey’s Siamese cats! This 1957 book was the first of her many cat-themed memoirs and is perfectly delightful for any animal lover. Their first Siamese was Sugieh, who loved nothing more than to jump into a full bath and frighten the life out of the bather. They bred her and kept two of the littermates, Solomon and Sheba, a mischievous pair whose first three years of antics fill much of the book: terrorizing dogs, pulling down the curtains, following horses, and developing, er, ‘refined’ tastes – “What with spiders, string, and the occasional butterfly caught napping on a cabbage which he ate wings and all, Solomon was, of course, frequently sick. But never, ever, was he so gloriously sick as the day he ate the cream cakes.”
Reviewed with four other cat books on my blog, Bookish Beck.
Reviewed with four other cat books on my blog, Bookish Beck.
May 30, 2017
Um livro descontraído, onde a autora nos conta alguns episódios "sui generis" dos seus gatos, com os quais, qualquer leitor que partilhe a vida com estes felinos, se consegue identificar. :)
March 12, 2021
This brief but wise collection of kitty memories was an absolute delight! I don’t think I would ever tire of reading about the adventures, antics, and acrobatics of Solomon and Sheba. And I truly marveled at the patience and calm resignation of the author and her husband as their kitties’ mischievous escapades escalated time after time. While I am thankful that my two feline children are not as unpredictable as Solomon and Sheba, they are far less entertaining. The numerous belly laughs and mortified gasps written within were well-worth the read. It was marvelous!
February 18, 2010
Hilarious and wonderful. A real comfort read for me, this tale of Siamese cats and their human slaves in England never fails to transport me.
Re-read 2/2010
I still love this book, as anthropomorphic and silly as it is. It's the more-or-less true story of how a nearly textbook dotty English couple who live in a picturesque English cottage in a picturesque English village lose control of their lives to some Siamese cats with personalities as large as the oceans. There are numerous falls down stairs and roofs, tumbles into water butts and bathtubs, and of course there are curtains torn down and food rejected as inferior. If you are a cat lover, I recommend this book to you.
Re-read 2/2010
I still love this book, as anthropomorphic and silly as it is. It's the more-or-less true story of how a nearly textbook dotty English couple who live in a picturesque English cottage in a picturesque English village lose control of their lives to some Siamese cats with personalities as large as the oceans. There are numerous falls down stairs and roofs, tumbles into water butts and bathtubs, and of course there are curtains torn down and food rejected as inferior. If you are a cat lover, I recommend this book to you.
March 22, 2016
A couple in England find themselves at a loss when their home become over-run by mice. In desperation, they go out and buy a Siamese kitten in the hopes that she'll be able to stop the invasion. This is the start of a life-long love for the breed, and many happy - and hilarious - adventures.
I really liked this one - it had me laughing right from the start. Any pet owner can sympathize with the troubles the Tovey's cats stir up, although their Siamese seem determined to take it to new heights. You have to agree with their assessment that their neighbours must have thought they were going mad by the end of the first four years.
The narrator, Jacqueline Bishop, did an excellent job of giving voice to Mrs. Tovey, bringing life to the characters and stories, and adding emphasis at just the right times to make the stories funny. I'd definitely listen to a book by her in the future.
I really liked this one - it had me laughing right from the start. Any pet owner can sympathize with the troubles the Tovey's cats stir up, although their Siamese seem determined to take it to new heights. You have to agree with their assessment that their neighbours must have thought they were going mad by the end of the first four years.
The narrator, Jacqueline Bishop, did an excellent job of giving voice to Mrs. Tovey, bringing life to the characters and stories, and adding emphasis at just the right times to make the stories funny. I'd definitely listen to a book by her in the future.
September 24, 2018
I haven't had very good experiences with Siamese cats, and this book made me glad I never had one. I love cats, but not cats like the ones in this book. I read it thinking the author was writing about her own experiences, and at the end it said it was a novel, and none of the characters were real. I couldn't imagine cats being as bad as these. I was glad when I finished reading and listening to this book.
November 13, 2021
This ostensibly charming book about craziey kitties is like 200 pages and took me literally four months to finish which really says it all, doesn’t it?
I came across one of the other books in the series at an antiquarian bookshop in July and the illustrations were VERY cute but I was VERY unemployed and had just spent like my last £20 on 1960s belt-making kits and a big ol Starbucks so I had to leave it there and find the whole series elsewhere. I’d planned to plow through the volumes on the train up to Newcastle for a wedding but instead had to do an extremely stressful copy test so maybe I just got off to a bad start but I don’t actually think so - I think it’s actually harder to write amusing and whimsical books about animals (and especially one’s own pets) than it seems.
There are so many episodes that begin with promise but just fall flat, and I can’t decide if it’s indicative of this country’s general attitude towards cats (i.e. indifference) or just that the author isn’t that funny (I feel certain that the cats themselves were very funny, but if your cat-rearing ethos is as laissez-faire as many people’s here, I don’t know that observing and portraying that is going to happen that effectively).
I think for stories like this to work we need some level of the kitties being too wise to be kitties juxtaposed at just the right moments with the reminder to both us and them that they are cats after all, and we love them because they both transcend and exemplify their natural state. The cats in this book are never portrayed as more than pets or little entities meant to provide their owners with amusing anecdotes, and that gets tiresome, especially when the narrator isn’t that amusing or interesting herself. I get that if people aren’t as obsessed with their cats as I am, they’re going to think of them in the pet way not in the tiny genius gourmand who is also sometimes thwarted by inconsiderately-arranged furniture and recordings of other cats on tv, but also, their loss. And subsequently mine because then I read their books and think they’ll be fun and this one extremely is not.
I came across one of the other books in the series at an antiquarian bookshop in July and the illustrations were VERY cute but I was VERY unemployed and had just spent like my last £20 on 1960s belt-making kits and a big ol Starbucks so I had to leave it there and find the whole series elsewhere. I’d planned to plow through the volumes on the train up to Newcastle for a wedding but instead had to do an extremely stressful copy test so maybe I just got off to a bad start but I don’t actually think so - I think it’s actually harder to write amusing and whimsical books about animals (and especially one’s own pets) than it seems.
There are so many episodes that begin with promise but just fall flat, and I can’t decide if it’s indicative of this country’s general attitude towards cats (i.e. indifference) or just that the author isn’t that funny (I feel certain that the cats themselves were very funny, but if your cat-rearing ethos is as laissez-faire as many people’s here, I don’t know that observing and portraying that is going to happen that effectively).
I think for stories like this to work we need some level of the kitties being too wise to be kitties juxtaposed at just the right moments with the reminder to both us and them that they are cats after all, and we love them because they both transcend and exemplify their natural state. The cats in this book are never portrayed as more than pets or little entities meant to provide their owners with amusing anecdotes, and that gets tiresome, especially when the narrator isn’t that amusing or interesting herself. I get that if people aren’t as obsessed with their cats as I am, they’re going to think of them in the pet way not in the tiny genius gourmand who is also sometimes thwarted by inconsiderately-arranged furniture and recordings of other cats on tv, but also, their loss. And subsequently mine because then I read their books and think they’ll be fun and this one extremely is not.
July 30, 2007
I loved this book! The writer's description of what the cats were really thinking/saying/doing was hysterical and the memoir has a fantastic voice. Makes me nostalgic for the days when my family still had our Siamese cat... but not so nostalgic that I'm going to run out and find one for myself. Was an interesting revelation to find out that it is common for Siamese cats to eat wool. Explains so much.
March 25, 2016
Recensione: http://ilibrisonounantidotoallatriste...
Il motivo per cui Doreen Tovey e suo marito Charles decidono di portare a casa il loro primo gatto, la bellissima siamese Sugieh, è semplice e banale: topi. Casa loro ne è infestata. Ma appena la gatta si insedia nella sua nuova reggia, mette subito le cose in chiaro con quei due buffi umani: lei è il capo, ogni sua parola (o meglio, miagolio) è un ordine. Sugieh è una vera prima donna, mangia solo quello che dice lei, dorme ovviamente nel letto padronale, fa i bisognini solo se la lettiera è all'altezza dei suoi standard, entra in casa solo se non ha impegni di vita mondana che la trattengano altrove ed è corteggiatissima da tutti i gatti dei dintorni.. ma è anche dolce e affettuosa, e i suoi occhioni sono irresistibili. Cosa resta da fare ai suoi padroni se non accontentarla in tutto? Quando poi da alla luce una nidiata di gattini altrettanto inarrestabili, la vita diventa davvero un'avventura e i guai si moltiplicano!
Questo è il primo libro di una serie tutta felina un po' datata, la cui pubblicazione è iniziata originariamente alla fine degli anni '60, composta da ben 14 libri, che l'autrice ha dedicato tutta ai gatti con cui negli anni ha condiviso la vita. In Italia ne sono arrivati solo cinque e recentemente questo primo volume è stato ristampato dalla Longanesi in una deliziosa collana economica tutta dedicata agli animali. Copertina a parte (che senso ha un persiano, e per giunta molto incazzato, sulla copertina di un libro che parla di siamesi?Mistero lol) ho trovato questo libro davvero delizioso e uno dei rari casi in cui lo 'slogan fascetta' in copertina si è dimostrato davvero veritiero. Insomma, quante volte i vari 'Non riuscirete a smettere di leggerlo' 'Vi conquisterà il cuore come nessun'altro' 'Questo libro ti cambierà la vita' hanno mantenuto la promessa? Questa copertina dice 'Il più divertente libro sui gatti che abbiate mai letto' e lo è. Ho riso tantissimo, certe scene mi hanno fatto veramente ribaltare dalle risate, è stato divertentissimo leggere dei vizi e dei guai che questa gattina e i suoi cuccioli combinavano, soprattutto perchè ho rivisto i miei gatti in alcuni dei loro comportamenti. E' stata una lettura che ho davvero apprezzato moltissimo e che ha portato una ventata di allegria e tante risate !
Il motivo per cui Doreen Tovey e suo marito Charles decidono di portare a casa il loro primo gatto, la bellissima siamese Sugieh, è semplice e banale: topi. Casa loro ne è infestata. Ma appena la gatta si insedia nella sua nuova reggia, mette subito le cose in chiaro con quei due buffi umani: lei è il capo, ogni sua parola (o meglio, miagolio) è un ordine. Sugieh è una vera prima donna, mangia solo quello che dice lei, dorme ovviamente nel letto padronale, fa i bisognini solo se la lettiera è all'altezza dei suoi standard, entra in casa solo se non ha impegni di vita mondana che la trattengano altrove ed è corteggiatissima da tutti i gatti dei dintorni.. ma è anche dolce e affettuosa, e i suoi occhioni sono irresistibili. Cosa resta da fare ai suoi padroni se non accontentarla in tutto? Quando poi da alla luce una nidiata di gattini altrettanto inarrestabili, la vita diventa davvero un'avventura e i guai si moltiplicano!
Questo è il primo libro di una serie tutta felina un po' datata, la cui pubblicazione è iniziata originariamente alla fine degli anni '60, composta da ben 14 libri, che l'autrice ha dedicato tutta ai gatti con cui negli anni ha condiviso la vita. In Italia ne sono arrivati solo cinque e recentemente questo primo volume è stato ristampato dalla Longanesi in una deliziosa collana economica tutta dedicata agli animali. Copertina a parte (che senso ha un persiano, e per giunta molto incazzato, sulla copertina di un libro che parla di siamesi?Mistero lol) ho trovato questo libro davvero delizioso e uno dei rari casi in cui lo 'slogan fascetta' in copertina si è dimostrato davvero veritiero. Insomma, quante volte i vari 'Non riuscirete a smettere di leggerlo' 'Vi conquisterà il cuore come nessun'altro' 'Questo libro ti cambierà la vita' hanno mantenuto la promessa? Questa copertina dice 'Il più divertente libro sui gatti che abbiate mai letto' e lo è. Ho riso tantissimo, certe scene mi hanno fatto veramente ribaltare dalle risate, è stato divertentissimo leggere dei vizi e dei guai che questa gattina e i suoi cuccioli combinavano, soprattutto perchè ho rivisto i miei gatti in alcuni dei loro comportamenti. E' stata una lettura che ho davvero apprezzato moltissimo e che ha portato una ventata di allegria e tante risate !
December 17, 2018
I had never met a nice Siamese, who doesn't let you pet them for a minute and then try to bite you!
I thought I would read this and see if they are as mean and nasty as I always thought, and this one was even worse than imagined! I am so glad that all we ever had was nice sweet tabbies. If I had ever brought a terror like this home, it would not have lasted more than one day, if that!
I hated this cat so much that I didn't even want to finish the book, so I didn't! I can't believe any adult would want a monster like this terrorizing the household and the neighborhood! That is just nuts! For sure won't read the other books.
I thought I would read this and see if they are as mean and nasty as I always thought, and this one was even worse than imagined! I am so glad that all we ever had was nice sweet tabbies. If I had ever brought a terror like this home, it would not have lasted more than one day, if that!
I hated this cat so much that I didn't even want to finish the book, so I didn't! I can't believe any adult would want a monster like this terrorizing the household and the neighborhood! That is just nuts! For sure won't read the other books.
March 2, 2019
Trouxe este livro da biblioteca por impulso, pois era sobre gatos. E quem é o amante de gatos que não gosta de ler sobre gatos?
Após a morte do seu esquilo e para tentar "combater" os ratos da sua casa, a autora e o marido decide comprar uma gatinha siamesa.
É certo que temos algumas situações mais caricatas sobre a gata e depois sobre os respectivos filhotes mas, infelizmente, não me conquistou como eu estava à espera,.
Vejam a minha opinião mais detalhada em vídeo, AQUI.
Após a morte do seu esquilo e para tentar "combater" os ratos da sua casa, a autora e o marido decide comprar uma gatinha siamesa.
É certo que temos algumas situações mais caricatas sobre a gata e depois sobre os respectivos filhotes mas, infelizmente, não me conquistou como eu estava à espera,.
Vejam a minha opinião mais detalhada em vídeo, AQUI.
June 9, 2010
I loved this book. I've had several friends with Siamese cats and it's hard to believe that this book was written so long ago, because it totally describes them. For that matter, it describes my 3 non-siamese owners. (let's not kid anyone- they own me, not the other way round!)Especially the way the cats voiced their opinions In Capitalized Exclamations and the general behavior when taken anywhere in the car.
December 21, 2017
Kissaihmisenä on aina ilo lukea kissoista :) Siamilaisista kissoista minulla ei ole omakohtaista kokemusta, joten tätä lukiessa mietti, onko kirjoittajan kuvaus niiden äänekkyydestä ja omaehtoisuudesta jopa väritettyä ja liioiteltua vai ovatko ne oikeasti näin röyhkeitä. Jos ovat, taidaan tyytyä omaan nöyrään ja vähään tyytyvään ragdolliini, jolla on persoona silläkin.
September 12, 2007
Another re-read. I love Doreen Tovey's work, which puzzles most people I know. She writes about English country life and Siamese cats, and the way she does it makes me laugh out loud.
June 7, 2020
This is not my first book about mid-century British Siamese cat ownership and their tendency to Express Their Thoughts in Capital Letters, and it won't be my last. I started haphazardly with a later book of Tovey's, but it convinced me I wanted more. This is uproariously funny as far as the wild antics of a young cat, later joined by her 4 kittens, and I loved both Dan Brown's illustrations and the incredibly charming text.
August 17, 2025
A very sweet insight into historical cat ownership, and the quirks of the Siamese breed. I felt that a lot of the stories echoed my experiences with my boy and girl sibling pair, though they are not Siamese!
May 26, 2019
I enjoyed this book so much I have ordered as many of the other books about her cats by this author as I could find. Well-written and entertaining. It's a cats warts and all book, and not for those without a sense of humour or a realistic idea of what cats are really like.
February 12, 2021
Um livrinho engraçado, fácil de ler.
É sobre uma família e os seus gatos, as suas tropelias, brincadeira e asneiras.
Para quem tem gatos ou gosta de gatos tem a sua piada porque acabamos por nos rever em algumas situações.
É sobre uma família e os seus gatos, as suas tropelias, brincadeira e asneiras.
Para quem tem gatos ou gosta de gatos tem a sua piada porque acabamos por nos rever em algumas situações.
September 2, 2024
Beautifully written book. Sometimes comical, sometimes sad, Doreen Tovey takes you through what it's like to be owned by Siamese cats. You'll possibly appreciate these books more if you have Siamese cat companions yourself (as they really are like no other cat) and you are able to relate to the stories which are told here. Looking forward to reading the next book in the 'Feline Frolics' series.
January 17, 2015
Doreen Tovey e suo marito Charles in seguito alla morte del loro scoiattolino hanno bisogno di un animale capace di dare la caccia ai topi. Chi meglio di un gatto?
La siamese Sugieh al primo incontro sembra una diva del cinema, le lunghe zampe affusolate, gli occhi chiari e la camminata da padrona del mondo. Nel momento in cui arriva nella sua nuova casa classifica come babbei pronti ai suoi voleri i loro padroncini. Per la prima notte e da allora dorme nel letto, predilige crema di granchio, fegato, pancetta e conigli. Il veterinario li ha già avvertiti, se ami un animale, ne diventi lo schiavo!
Impiegano davvero poco tempo ad apprendere il significato di quelle parole. La scelta della sabbia nella cassettina dei bisogni, le notti di luna in ottobre quando si rifiuta di rientrare, sfogarsi buttando giù la gabbia dell'uccellino...
Sugieh è diventata la padrona di casa, invadente, monopolizzatrice, furba, ruffiana ma anche coccolona. Esilaranti avventure accadranno nella famiglia Tovey, specialmente dopo la nascita dei gattini.
Amate i gatti, avete un gatto siamese? Allora questo libro fa per voi. Ripenserete a qualche episodio divertente accaduto al vostro felino.
La siamese Sugieh al primo incontro sembra una diva del cinema, le lunghe zampe affusolate, gli occhi chiari e la camminata da padrona del mondo. Nel momento in cui arriva nella sua nuova casa classifica come babbei pronti ai suoi voleri i loro padroncini. Per la prima notte e da allora dorme nel letto, predilige crema di granchio, fegato, pancetta e conigli. Il veterinario li ha già avvertiti, se ami un animale, ne diventi lo schiavo!
Impiegano davvero poco tempo ad apprendere il significato di quelle parole. La scelta della sabbia nella cassettina dei bisogni, le notti di luna in ottobre quando si rifiuta di rientrare, sfogarsi buttando giù la gabbia dell'uccellino...
Sugieh è diventata la padrona di casa, invadente, monopolizzatrice, furba, ruffiana ma anche coccolona. Esilaranti avventure accadranno nella famiglia Tovey, specialmente dopo la nascita dei gattini.
Amate i gatti, avete un gatto siamese? Allora questo libro fa per voi. Ripenserete a qualche episodio divertente accaduto al vostro felino.
Read
December 20, 2016The General summary of this book would be that there are these couple and they used to have a mouse (not domesticated) but they loved it until it died. After that they got a new cat named Sugieh she grew up to become sort of like a remake of their old mouse, even if the cat was like a new version of their mouse she was crazy and unpredictable. After they had Sugieh for a while she started to disappear out of the house a lot and her owners were very curious about where she was going cause she had been coming back only during the nighttime. After a while Sugieh had kittens, finally a realization clicked in her owners minds. But after a while Sugieh decided to become the perfect mother, she would dash through the hall and dash back to the room her kittens were in although she would always drop her favorite kitten down the stairs (Lovingly) That was Solomon that Sugieh had always dropped because Solomon was her favorite kitten.
July 26, 2018
A humorous account of a clueless British couple in 1950’s rural countryside who are ruled by a pair of Siamese cats. While some of the cultural references went right by me, I found if amusing but I could have written the same book about any of the pairs of cats who have owned me. I guess I shouldn’t have been surprised that by the mid 1950’s, the couple didn’t own a refrigerator but I was, and Of Course, no self respecting Siamese would be expected to eat day old meat that hasn’t been refrigerated. I’m not sure I would. Should I include the stories of my non-purebred cat who could manage to eat flowers no matter where they were hidden? Or my current Burmese who is just as talkative but converses in squeaks rather than normal cat noises? But most cat owners refuse to give in to their demands and learn not to leave tempting objects lying around. Trying to house a bird and a Siamese at the same time is madness.
February 18, 2014
Chi ama i gatti, non potrà che trovare simpatica questa serie di Doreen Tovey, tutta incentrata sulle avventure dei suoi gatti siamesi. Questo primo episodio è molto carino, anche se, da gattofila sfegatata quale sono, avrei preferito che si parlasse di gatti comuni, anziché solo ed esclusivamente di siamesi e quindi come scelta narrativa l'ho trovata un po' "razzista".
Comunque ci sono alcuni punti davvero divertenti, nei quali non si può fare a meno di confrontare i propri gatti con quelli del libro, ma a volte la comicità diventa forzata, quasi esasperata, e mi ha stufata un po'... In definitiva questo libro non è male, ma devo dire che da come era stato presentato mi aspettavo di meglio. Ovviamente leggerò anche gli altri della serie, e vediamo se cambierò idea.
Comunque ci sono alcuni punti davvero divertenti, nei quali non si può fare a meno di confrontare i propri gatti con quelli del libro, ma a volte la comicità diventa forzata, quasi esasperata, e mi ha stufata un po'... In definitiva questo libro non è male, ma devo dire che da come era stato presentato mi aspettavo di meglio. Ovviamente leggerò anche gli altri della serie, e vediamo se cambierò idea.
Read
January 30, 2009This was yet another recommendation from someone..? as it came in from another library special order.
Very very quick light, fun read.
Who knew siamese cats could be so cunning and entertaining.
This was "extremely" funny and actually a good read for a parent to read to a child as well. I will be looking for the follow up of this by same author.
self-note: yarn/knitting mentioned briefly in book.
Very very quick light, fun read.
Who knew siamese cats could be so cunning and entertaining.
This was "extremely" funny and actually a good read for a parent to read to a child as well. I will be looking for the follow up of this by same author.
self-note: yarn/knitting mentioned briefly in book.
November 10, 2010
I think that 4 starts might be pushing it, but I suddenly had this vision at the end that this book would make a decent kids film (Disney you should think about it) in that the cats get up to some very funny antics ... it was hard to think of them as cats for much of the time, probably ebcause the author did not. I liked her labelling of the cats or the situation at times eg. The Morning he Wanted to Be a Horse. I think this would be a good book for prospective parents, of cats or children.
February 14, 2018
Tovey's laugh-out-loud misadventures as a first-time slave to Siamese cats are what set me on a decades-long relationship with these charming devils.
Still funny after all these years.
If you've ever been owned by a Siamese, or if you're considering mortgaging your soul to one, or even if you just enjoy reading about the antics of these critters, whose personalities are as big as their voices, you'll enjoy this tale.
Still funny after all these years.
If you've ever been owned by a Siamese, or if you're considering mortgaging your soul to one, or even if you just enjoy reading about the antics of these critters, whose personalities are as big as their voices, you'll enjoy this tale.
December 20, 2010
I first read this book in my early teens, and I loved it... even though I didn't like cats. Quite a few years later I have finally got my hands on a copy of my own - and I still love it! Now that I have cats, some parts made me laugh even more.
This book is one of the funniest books I have ever read, and I recommend it even if you are not a cat-lover.
This book is one of the funniest books I have ever read, and I recommend it even if you are not a cat-lover.
January 27, 2016
I could never finish a bad book - so, I don't think this is a bad book. However, it didn't make me fall in love with the characters, neither humans or felines. It's an easy and fast reading, but not exactly fulfilling. I guess that, as said before, it's only funny if we had been there. It ends up being some well not boring amount of facts and memories for those cats.
March 13, 2008
This is one I re-read all the time for a good laugh. I am pretty sure my copy is one I got in England who knows when, or maybe my Mother brought it back or someone did for me. I know it is hardbound. Great book. Makes me remember my squirrel since the Tovey's started out with one.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 100 reviews