The Writer's Cats

From the best-selling author of The Elegance of the Hedgehog comes this delightful, delicate tale that pays tribute to the poetry of the everyday, to Japanese philosophy, and to the ingenuity and sardonic humor of cats.

What a mysterious, confounding thing is a writer Yet, spend a little time with the writer's cats and one might just understand her better.

Muriel Barbery, via her feline friends and co-conspirators, takes readers into her atelier, offering them a behind-the-scenes peek into her process and problems, joys and disappointments. The tale is told from the perspective of one of the writer's four cats, Kirin, who, together with her cohort, may or may not be a reliable narrator. There's Ocha, the leader of the gang, a tough guy with a soft heart; the bandy-legged and affectionate Mizu, Ocha's sister; the phlegmatic and refined Petrus, lover of flowers; and finally, pretty Kirin, narrator of this bewitching story.

A superb, funny, and touching text for writers, readers, fans of Muriel Barbery's best-selling novels, and cat lovers.

Muriel Barbery's novels include the New York Times bestseller, The Elegance of the Hedgehog (Europa, 2008), and Gourmet Rhapsody, published by Europa Editions in 2009). Barbery has lived in Kyoto, Amsterdam, and Paris, and now lives in the French countryside.

Alison Anderson's translations for Europa Editions include novels by Sélim Nassib, Amélie Nothomb, and Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt. She has translated all of Muriel Barbery's novels.

Maria Guitart was born in Barcelona in 1978. She holds a degree in Art History from the University of Barcelona and a certificate of Higher Technical Education in Illustration from the Massana School of Art and Design. Currently, she combines her job as an illustrator with work as an editor of international fiction.