Uploaded January 2019 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Dear, indulgent reader:
Usually, our reviews arrive in your inbox on Saturdays. Not so this time. In shameless obeisance to the CBC's much respected 3-hour programme, "The Sunday Edition", which prompts this particular "post", your correspondent has finally composed an overdue paean to the beloved feline of the species: one which dominates the Hoare house and, to a lesser extent, this website.
In the wake of a particular "essay" in a particular episode of this remarkable programme (q.v. the January 6th, 2019 edition, available online at CBC.ca/radio/thesundayedition, or on SIRIUS XM), entitled "What Happened When the Cat Died," the bereaved owner of Sir Hamish, her beloved orange tabby, delivers a humorous, yet rueful requiem to a feisty, recently deceased beast of considerable character and charm, whose demise at the ripe old age of twenty prompted an outpouring of community sympathy and support at a level that simply floored her.
As the devoted owner of multiple cats over four decades myself, dotted about both domestically and in our four retail stores, said essay was a show-stopper, prompting me to ruminate on cats both past and present, and to dig out some favourite tomes on the topic.
Some (but not all) of these feature in the accompanying video (or, as our friends at PBS would term it, vignette): a mess of literary pottage that comes to you with no apologies (most of the titles concerned are out of print, but readily available second-hand), having secured the feline equivalent of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval from the paws of the Hoare house's present pair of incumbents, to wit:
PIPPIN: Maine Coon, female, photogenic, age 10; and
TOETOE (she of the six toes, Hemingway-style: not to be confused with a certain pop group): "rescue" cat, somewhat portly, origins indeterminate, age 9
As to "The Sunday Edition" itself, all 1,000-plus episodes of which are assiduously archived for online delving, this delightful, durable and consistently refreshing institution has been a Sunday morning tradition at the Hoare house for lo! these many years, and is warmly recommended to listeners both north and south of the border. Indeed, as Michael Enright, its distinguished and amiable host of long standing, records at strategic intervals, "Don't go away!"
Please visit us at bookreviewsandvideos.com
Dear, indulgent reader:
Usually, our reviews arrive in your inbox on Saturdays. Not so this time. In shameless obeisance to the CBC's much respected 3-hour programme, "The Sunday Edition", which prompts this particular "post", your correspondent has finally composed an overdue paean to the beloved feline of the species: one which dominates the Hoare house and, to a lesser extent, this website.
In the wake of a particular "essay" in a particular episode of this remarkable programme (q.v. the January 6th, 2019 edition, available online at CBC.ca/radio/thesundayedition, or on SIRIUS XM), entitled "What Happened When the Cat Died," the bereaved owner of Sir Hamish, her beloved orange tabby, delivers a humorous, yet rueful requiem to a feisty, recently deceased beast of considerable character and charm, whose demise at the ripe old age of twenty prompted an outpouring of community sympathy and support at a level that simply floored her.
As the devoted owner of multiple cats over four decades myself, dotted about both domestically and in our four retail stores, said essay was a show-stopper, prompting me to ruminate on cats both past and present, and to dig out some favourite tomes on the topic.
Some (but not all) of these feature in the accompanying video (or, as our friends at PBS would term it, vignette): a mess of literary pottage that comes to you with no apologies (most of the titles concerned are out of print, but readily available second-hand), having secured the feline equivalent of the Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval from the paws of the Hoare house's present pair of incumbents, to wit:
PIPPIN: Maine Coon, female, photogenic, age 10; and
TOETOE (she of the six toes, Hemingway-style: not to be confused with a certain pop group): "rescue" cat, somewhat portly, origins indeterminate, age 9
As to "The Sunday Edition" itself, all 1,000-plus episodes of which are assiduously archived for online delving, this delightful, durable and consistently refreshing institution has been a Sunday morning tradition at the Hoare house for lo! these many years, and is warmly recommended to listeners both north and south of the border. Indeed, as Michael Enright, its distinguished and amiable host of long standing, records at strategic intervals, "Don't go away!"
Please visit us at bookreviewsandvideos.com
