Feline Folios is compiled/written by
Patrick Roberts
Copyright © 2003-08 Purr 'n' Fur UK

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Travelling Cat in Ireland (Frederick Harrison; HarperCollins, 1991; ISBN 0 246 13700 2). This delightful book is a sequel to the author's Travelling Cat (see Folios 2) and relates his adventures travelling this time around Ireland in his camper van. He is accompanied on the journey by Pugwash, as on his earlier odyssey, but this time also by Pugwash's mother, known as Cheesy. The two cats are almost indistinguishable in the photos. As before, Harrison's offbeat humour and keen sense of observation — especially about the people he meets — make this a very enjoyable read.

100 Cats who Changed Civilization: History's Most Influential Felines (Sam Stall; Quirk Books, 2007; 978 1 59474 163 0). A fascinating, pocket-sized book that includes some of the same well-known cats as in Hero Cats (see Folios 2), but many more besides. The accounts are written in a very readable style, and there are some line drawings. I learned a lot from this small volume and found it most enjoyable.

Willi Whizkas: Tall Tales and Lost Lives! (Jonnie Paws and Carol Claws; Zymurgy Publishing, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, UK, 2005; ISBN 1 903506 18 2). I gather that the authors (are those really their names?) have written other Willi Whizkas books, dating back to 1991, but this was the first I had come across. Basically it's a children’s book, written in an easy-to-read style, and it recounts the day-to-day adventures of Willi and his friends Ginger Tompkins, Gordon and Tushtots with other human and animal inhabitants of their neighbourhood. It's beautifully observed as far as cat behaviour goes — but I wish they'd used a better proofreader!

Somewhere a Cat is Waiting (Derek Tangye; Book Club Associates/Michael Joseph Ltd, 1977; no ISBN). This particular edition is a revised and abridged compilation of three of Tangye's earlier books, A Cat in the Window (1962), Lama (1966) and A Cat Affair (1974). These books concern the life of Tangye and his wife Jeannie's escape from the London rat race to Minack Cottage in Cornwall, and the various feline companions who shared their lives at different times. Husband and wife become completely enchanted with their new way of life, and with the cats, and I in turn was enchanted by his writing. I was left definitely wanting to read more by this author and will be seeking out other books about the cats of Minack.

Curaçao (Agneta Näslund; UK edition Souvenir Press, 1993; ISBN 0285 63164 0). This unusual little book, by a Swedish author, is probably not so easy to find these days. It is a delightful collection of poems, prose, and above all wonderful photos (in black and white) of kitten Curaçao as she grows up, explores and is 'into' everything, along with her 'adult' friends, black Cassis and tabby Seagram. Well worth a browse.

Cambridge Cats (Tony Jedrej; Gerald Duckworth & Co., London, 1994; ISBN 07156 2636 1). Here is another book of monochrome photos, with not much text — just enough to identify the cats and their surroundings. As it was published in 1994, no doubt most, if not all, of the felines shown have now died — but 'college cats' are still alive and well in Cambridge and various other places (see College Cats by Richard Surman on Folios 1). Here are 20 of the 1990s ones, posed and unposed, in gardens, courtyards and residents' studies and charmingly photographed.