Product Description

After dropping a bombshell that was a bestseller, Lilian Jackson Braun brings back James Qwilleran and his famous felines, Koko and Yum Yum, for the twenty-ninth installment of the beloved, bestselling Cat Who . . . series.

Moose County, 400 miles north of everywhere, is in an uproar (good and bad) following vast inheritances from wealthy old families. Only "Cool Koko" knows what's happening . . . and he's not telling. Jim Qwilleran thinks it's because he has more whiskers than ordinary cats, but who's counting?

Meanwhile . . .
Koko meets a piano tuner.
Polly goes to Paris.
Qwill writes a play (an absurdist play titled The Cat Who Got Elected Dog Catcher).
And there's a mysterious death from a bee sting . . .

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #97399 in Books
• Published on: 2007-01-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 208 pages

From Publishers Weekly
Diehard fans will best appreciate Braun's meandering 29th "Cat Who..." mystery (after 2006's The Cat Who Dropped a Bombshell). Series hero Jim "Qwill" Qwilleran, columnist for the Moose County Something in remote Pickax City, Mich., gets involved in the local literary club, a new senior center and an absurdist play called The Cat Who Was Elected Dogcatcher. When Polly Duncan, "the chief woman in his life," goes off to Paris, Qwill is left without a companion for his various social outings. Incidental criminal activities include arson, missing funds and death by bee sting. Siamese cats Koko and Yum Yum add the usual feline fun.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From AudioFile
George Guidall assumes the character of news columnist Jim "Quill" Qwilleran with an authentic small-town flavor. In this episode of Braun's series, Quill plans to write an absurdist play titled "The Cat Who Was Elected Dogcatcher" for the literary club. As usual, Quill's Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum, join the plot. This time Koko is suspected of being a "psychic" kitty because prior to violent death, Koko announces the event with bloodcurdling yowls. Sadly, additional criminal activities--arson at the new senior center and death by bee sting--cause the plot to become confusing. Guidall's vocal antics and cat characterizations are the best part of this audiobook, which only die-hard "Cat Who..." listeners will appreciate. G.D.W. © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
The twenty-ninth in the immensely popular Cat Who series won't win the series any new fans. As usual, Moose County, 400 miles north of everywhere, is the setting, and mustachioed Jim ("Quill") Quilleran, columnist for the Moose County Something, and his cats, Koko and Yum Yum, are the principals, though Yum Yum serves a peripheral role here, leaving the psychic Siamese Koko in full command, foretelling the coming of phone calls and issuing curdling howls when someone suffers a violent death. In this episode, the Old Hulk, which is being developed as a senior center, mysteriously burns to the ground. Meanwhile, a young woman dies from a bee sting--it could be murder--and Quill's lady friend, Polly, goes to Paris and decides to stay there. Then Quill's beloved apple-barn residence is also destroyed by fire. Unfortunately, these story threads tend to peter out with no resolution, and the cat characterizations, usually a strong point, seem a bit forced, making it difficult to see them as real felines, albeit sentient ones. None of this will matter all that much to the series faithful, however, who bring fully formed senses of the characters to each adventure. A welcome chance to revisit Moose County for regulars, then, but don't expect passers-by to stick around. Sally Estes
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Customer Reviews

Very Disappointing
The title and the book had nothing to do with each other. There wasn't a plot and at times you felt like you were reading a outline for a story. There were three mysteries with no investigations and two death howls but only one "murder". Please don't write any more of these books if this is the trash that will result.

Good grief
The series has been going down hill but this excuse for a mystery is rather sad. I'm going to have to go back and listen to one of the early ones to get rid of the memory of this one. Just on more talented person who didn't know when to quit.

Shameful
I've read nearly all "The Cat Who" books and have liked some of them very much and have been luke warm on several. But this one is simply terrible. There is no plot. There are a couple of maybe arsons that are never explained. There is a death that could be a murder, but we never know about that. The book just wanders about with little meaningless incidents.

According to some accounts, Ms Braun was ailing when she wrote this, but that is no excuse for the publisher bringing it out with fanfare. Oh, I forgot--the publisher knew it would sell because there are many fans of Qwill and his cats. It is an insult to readers.

There are all sorts of problems beyond what I've mentioned. For example, it seems that Ms Braun forgot that Qwilleran is an alcoholic and cannot drink any alcohol. It is certainly implied that he drinks in this book. Ms Braun also seems to have forgotten that there are two Siamese cats. Koko gets all the mention here, and I recall seeing Yum Yum's name but once. Exclamation points abound in this book, as if the reader might be tricked into believing something was actually happening if the description was filled with exclamation points.

I'll not be tricked into reading any more new Cat books. I'd rather remember the good ones nearer the beginning of the series.