The Travelling Cat Chronicles

August 20, 2018
Nana, a stray cat adopted by 30-something Satoru Miyawaki, narrates this lovely tale by Arikawa (Library Wars) of the travels that the pair take when Satoru must look for a new home for Nana. The stray is a proud, independent hunter who only deigns to be adopted after he is struck by a car and rescued by Satoru. After five years together, Satoru comes to the conclusion that he has to find a new home for Nana and so arranges a series of meetings with friends from his youth—Kosuke from elementary school, Yoshimine from junior high, and Sugi and Chikako from high school and college. Each of his friends is willing to take in Nana, but in the end, none of them proves to be right for the cat. Both enjoy their journey in Satoru’s silver van, which enables Satoru to renew old friendships and allows Nana to meet other pets and observe some of Japan’s beautiful scenery, including Mt. Fuji and the northern island of Hokkaido. Readers will perhaps pick up on the reason that Satoru must find Nana a new home before the cat does, but Arikawa is very subtle with this plotline. This touching novel of a brave cat and his gentle, wise human will resonate with lovers of animal tales, quiet stories of friendship, and travelogues alike.

August 15, 2018
A wise and witty cat and his gentle master share an indomitable spirit that helps them survive and thrive in any situation in this Japanese bestseller.The white cat with the crooked tail is happy with life as a stray. He is just fine without humans, thank you very much. But when a car hits him, breaking his leg, he thinks of the kind man who leaves him food and lets him sleep on the hood of his van. Satoru Miyawaki welcomes the stray that shows up at his door and nurses him back to health. He names the cat Nana, the Japanese word for the numeral seven, the shape of the cat's crooked tale. Nana and Satoru form a bond of love and loyalty that grows deeper over the five-plus years they share their lives. So it's a surprise when Satoru embarks on a road trip across Japan with Nana in an attempt to find a new home for the cat with childhood friends. The reason for the journey is revealed later, and we also learn details of Satoru's life through conversations with his friends and Nana's smart-alecky commentary. Despite its seeming simplicity, the novel contains surprising depth. Arikawa artfully portrays Nana's "catness," from the subtle flick of an ear to a lashing tail. He pairs Nana with the gentle soul of Satoru, who has learned to allow the trials of life to strengthen him and polish his spirit. And he leads readers to see what Satoru learned and Nana already knew: that the key to a well-lived life is acceptance.Gentle, soft-spoken, and full of wisdom.

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September 1, 2018
Outside his window, Satoru hears the piercing cries of an animal in pain. When he enters his apartment building's courtyard, Satoru finds the stray cat he has been feeding for the last several months. The cat is pleading for help with a broken leg. Eventually, Satoru adopts the cat and names him Nana, and the two live happily together for many years. This novel is often told from the perspective of Nana, whose sassy commentary about the world he lives in is incredibly charming and smart. Reality hits hard, however, when, for reasons unclear to Nana, Satoru must find the cat a new home. Satoru will not entrust Nana's care to just anyone, and so begins a journey across Japan in a silver van as the two visit Satoru's old friends. Flipping between Nana's observations and flashbacks into Satoru's past, Arikawa's novel, already a bestseller in Japan, boasts vivid and well-rendered characters in the midst of trying to do what's best for those they love the most.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)