Unconditional: Stories of Women and the Animals They Love

An intimate and moving collection of stories about women and their life-changing relationships with animals, told in vivid graphic novel style.

In Unconditional, popular illustrator and writer Cat Willett explores the deep, sometimes transcendent relationship between women and their animal companions. The animals she's shared her life with have pulled her through difficult times, accompanied her through growth and transition, and taught her a great deal about pain and loss. Using rich, full-color illustrations, she shares illuminating stories of different women and their pets, including:

• Terra and her parrot, Pooja, grieved together when Terra's mother passed away from pancreatic cancer.
• Tuck and Liza, two cats adopted in Ukraine and Poland, helped Brianne cope with the challenge of waiting for her journalist husband to return from an assignment in a war zone.
• Hyesu adopted her dog, Dutch, from a shelter and found calm and support for her anxiety.
• Finn, Pam's rabbit, helped her redefine the meaning of family while providing companionship and support living in a big city far from home.

With these honest, pure retellings, as well as her own stories, Willett reveals the mutual bond that grows when animals are invited into our sphere and how meaningful those relationships can be.

ANIMATED HISTORY: Within each profile, captivating facts about the animals' origins, domestication, and habits add a layer of historical context to the personal tales.

WOMEN AND PETS: This collection shines a loving spotlight on the mutual nature of the relationships between women and a diverse list of animals--including a parrot, guinea pig, rabbit, horse, dogs, and cats--and their unique and touching life experiences together. A foreword by Susan Korn, founder of the Susan Alexandra accessories brand, is included.

TALENTED AUTHOR-ILLUSTRATOR: Merging Cat Willett's empathetic voice and signature lush illustrations that have captivated readers of the New York Times and the Washington Post, Unconditional is sure to resonate with anyone who has ever felt transformed by a relationship with their companion animal.

Perfect for:

• Pet owners and animal lovers
• Fans of graphic memoirs
• Readers with an interest in women's stories, animal welfare, spirituality, and the human-animal bond
• Gift-giving in celebration of pet adoption, Mother's Day, Valentine's Day, Galentine's Day, birthday, or any special occasion

Author: Cat Willett
Publisher: Princeton Architectural Press
Published: 03/03/2026
Pages: 240
Binding Type: Paperback
Weight: 1.45lbs
Size: 8.90h x 7.50w x 0.90d
ISBN: 9781797235318


Review Citation(s):
Kirkus Reviews 03/01/2026
Publishers Weekly 03/02/2026

About the Author
Cat Willett is an illustrator and author whose work celebrates women and aims to uplift and inspire others through comics and books. She is the author of The Queen of Wands: The Story of Pamela Colman Smith: The Artist Behind the Rider-Waite Tarot Deck and Women of Tarot, An Illustrated History of Divinators, Cards Readers and Mystics. Her client list includes the New York Times, Spotify, Daily Harvest, Doc Martens, Adobe, and the Brooklyn Public Library. Cat lives in Brooklyn with her partner, their two boys, and their dog Bowie.