Guest book review by Peter J Wolf
There are, it seems to me, two approaches to writing a good adventure story. A writer can either draw the reader anxiously along toward an uncertain ending, or disclose the outcome up front and let the reader settle into the adventure itself. I don’t imagine either approach is easy, but the writer who gives away the ending, does, I think, take on some particularly daunting challenges. To do it well—to produce a page-turner—as Allan Goldstein has done with The Confessions of a Catnip Junkie, is therefore commendable.
Catnip Junkie is the story of two-year-old Doo Doo, a restless orange tabby whose curiosity takes him coast-to-coast and back again, told from the perspective of an older, much wiser cat. “I am two cats,” he says. “The Doo Doo who was born of this story and the Doo Doo who lived it, fourteen years ago.”
Perhaps it’s this dual role that makes Doo Doo such a charismatic narrator, his confessions so compelling. Speaking of which, I have a confession of my own: I was a little hesitant to delve into Catnip Junkie. Four-hundred pages of cat-speak? Really? (Confession #2: I do talk to my cats, and more often than not reply—a different voice for each of them—on their behalf. Still, I do my best to spare others.) Once I picked it up, though, I found the book difficult to put down—due, in no small part, to the numerous scrapes recounted by a feline protagonist once “full of lust, mostly wanderlust.”
“I have dreams of that used-to-be-me cat being trapped all the time. He was always plotting an escape, making an escape, escaping. I wonder, how could a cat get himself stuck so often? Fourteen years later that is still a marvel to me, even more than his whiskersbreadth escapes. He still brags about those, the cat-who-used-to-be-me thought he was pretty slick. He was, but he was also an idiot. I can see that now, but he couldn’t.”
But Catnip Junkie is surprisingly touching, too—more so, I suppose, for anybody who’s ever had a cat go missing. In the end, the need to be with his people proves more powerful than the catnip that lured him away. “Having loving humans,” confesses Doo Doo, is “like the late-morning sun on your back, a belly full of food, and a head floating in the bright clouds of nipland, only better.”
With motivation like that, it’s no wonder this hero’s journey is such a delight to settle into.
ENTER TO WIN!
One lucky reader is going to receive a copy of The Confessions of a Catnip Junkie. To enter, please leave a comment on this post. The winner will be chosen in a random drawing on September 29. One entry per person. This giveaway includes free shipping to addresses in the US and Canada.
September 25th, 2010 at 5:19 pm
Miaow! Here is our guru! Lot’s of inspiration here!
September 25th, 2010 at 6:19 pm
I love the cover, makes me want to see what’s inside.
September 25th, 2010 at 7:58 pm
I would love to read this book. I have a great collection an d this would be a great addition!!
September 26th, 2010 at 8:49 am
Just what we need to help us get through the l-o-n-g, cold winter.
September 26th, 2010 at 9:25 am
A cat after my own heart. I too am addicted to the ambrosia of plants.I think Doo Doo and I would become fast friends! – Bruno
September 26th, 2010 at 9:52 am
all my kitties are catnip junkies too!!!
September 26th, 2010 at 4:22 pm
I’d love to read this book!
September 26th, 2010 at 4:29 pm
I love to read and I love cats – this book definitely goes on my must-read list!
September 26th, 2010 at 6:27 pm
Sounds like a wonderful book!
September 26th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Entryyyy.
September 26th, 2010 at 8:30 pm
I got three of my own catnip junkies!
September 27th, 2010 at 5:50 am
Sounds like a great read. If I win a copy I will read it to my cat!!
September 27th, 2010 at 6:04 am
Always looking for a good read.
September 27th, 2010 at 6:49 am
I love reading stories like this…especially considering my five catnips fiends at home.
September 27th, 2010 at 9:35 am
I’m adding this to my to read list whether I win or not.
September 27th, 2010 at 10:42 am
I WOULD LOVE TO READ THIS BOOK
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September 27th, 2010 at 3:39 pm
Looks like a fun read. I’d love to get a copy.
September 27th, 2010 at 6:15 pm
I HAVE tried talking to my two little catnip junkies but they won’t listen.
Sofia has resorted to “mainlining” gulping mouthfuls of it! Keef tears open catnip filled toys to get it.
Hope I win so I can read the book to them…
September 27th, 2010 at 9:47 pm
I have never had a cat go missing but I have “lost” many a beloved feline members of my family over the years. This story sounds like it has it all … love & laughter, tears & sorrow, adventure & excitement and happiness & hope. I will be looking for it to read one way or another.
September 28th, 2010 at 10:00 am
my cats are such catnip junkies…i would love this….lol
September 28th, 2010 at 2:42 pm
I will have to have my little “rosie” check out this book and perhaps post it on her new blog.
September 28th, 2010 at 3:12 pm
wow, I can’t wait to read this book!
September 28th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
this book sounds compelling! i would love to read it
September 29th, 2010 at 6:07 am
I look forward to reading your book and hearing the way you bring Doo Doo to life with your own voice. Was delighted to read that you make voices for your kitties as my husband does for our pug. My cats are not amused at that, but I’ll bet that they Love your book and Doo Doo’s antics! Congratulations!
September 29th, 2010 at 6:37 am
Reading this would be interesting
September 30th, 2010 at 7:57 am
This book sounds ace! Would love to win it so I can have a good read.
October 2nd, 2010 at 12:21 am
Seems interesting! at first I too thought, a book about cat speak? but looks like it’s good.
November 29th, 2010 at 1:05 pm
My Sheshe is a recreational user on occasion, but my Harry is a hard core addict. Maybe if I read him this book, he can find the help he needs!
September 14th, 2011 at 2:42 pm
I read this book and LOVED it!!!!!