Thursday, November 29, 2012

Book Review: The Dalai Lama's Cat by David Michie

The Dalai Lama's Cat by David Michie is a charming novel that captures the reader's attention from the very first page as the cat recounts how life has brought her to the Dalai Lama's home with the stunning view of the Himalayas and how life is a series of experiences from which to learn.

Not one of those sickeningly sweet books where the cat talks, the cat serves as narrator and observer whose literary voice is more that of an adult human than an animal's and yet, her references as a feline are accurate. The feline attitude is never far away, nor are the feline characteristics with which the cat is imbued.

A tiny kitten who, along with her littermates is stolen by children determined to sell them, the kittens are much too young to leave their mother. The tiny kitten is the last one left and is nearly killed by the cruel children. As fate would have it, the Dalai Lama is just returning from a lecture tour and his car is stopped in traffic right across the street from where the children are about to kill the last kitten, the one they have injured. The Dalai Lama sends one of his people to buy the kitten; its uncertain survival now in the hands of The Dalai Lama who, along with his staff, nurses the kitten back to health.

Her new life brings her in contact with Buddhist masters, famous philanthropists, Hollywood stars, Ivy League professors and other people both famous and common. And from each situation the little cat grows emotionally as well as physically and learns much about life that we humans would do well to apply to ourselves.  Change, we learn, begins from within us.

Michie has captured the culture, the pace and the beauty of the setting while his little cat captures the reader's heart.  

This is a book that will stay with you long after the last page has been turned.

Published by Hay House you can The Dalai Lama's Cat at your local bookstore or online.  Here's a link that will take you to it:  http://www.amazon.com/Dalai-Lamas-Cat-David-Michie/dp/1401940587/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1354225918&sr=1-1&keywords=the+dalai+lama%27s+cat

7 comments:

Layla Morgan Wilde ( Cat Wisdom 101) said...

Darlene, you've summed up how I feel about this remarkable book. It really has it all: wit, wisdom, humor, drama narrated by a beautiful, furry form called HHC.

Rescuegal said...

Nice review. Definitely sounds like a good read and one I look forward to.

www.davidmichie.com said...

Thank you SO much Darlene for your very generous review of my book. I am so glad that it resonated with you and deeply appreciate your support.

Warm regards, David

Darlene said...

I'm so glad you like the review, David. Your book did, indeed, resonate with me. Thank you for creating such a wonderful novel. I savored every page.

Mirza Ghalib said...

I am not a very religious person… nor am I the types to subscribe to any spiritual beliefs. My only contact with god is when I feel thankful or when I need something very badly… spirituality is something I have always avoided. I don’t like hearing/reading or learning about it.

When I picked up this book, it was only cause the title intrigued me. If I had known it would contain spiritual or philosophical learnings, I would have never ever bought this book ( yeah.. I am weird in this sense). But I am glad I did buy it and read it. Finished it in a single day. It gave me comfort through my sniffles and sore throat while I lay bundled up in a blanket sipping green tea.

The narrator, as most of you would have guessed from the title, is a cat. Now I abhor cats… or dogs… for a simple reason that… I don’t know what they are thinking and I hate that! But, even I wanted to pet and cuddle the cat while I was reading the book. It is a beautiful amalgamation of Buddha’s teachings and the feline characteristics which make it a loved pet of… some people.

It made sense… even if you hate the thought of spiritual or philosophical non-sense (no offence to believers), you would love this book. It doesn’t delve too much into Buddhism or try to give too many lectures. It subtly merges some of the enlightening thoughts of the religion with everyday life events… Makes it more believable and adaptable to non believers like me.

I loved reading it and maybe someday would want to pick up the other titles from the author.

Neha said...

I am not a very religious person??? nor am I the types to subscribe to any spiritual beliefs. My only contact with god is when I feel thankful or when I need something very badly??? spirituality is something I have always avoided. I don???t like hearing/reading or learning about it.

When I picked up this book, it was only cause the title intrigued me. If I had known it would contain spiritual or philosophical learnings, I would have never ever bought this book ( yeah.. I am weird in this sense). But I am glad I did buy it and read it. Finished it in a single day. It gave me comfort through my sniffles and sore throat while I lay bundled up in a blanket sipping green tea.

The narrator, as most of you would have guessed from the title, is a cat. Now I abhor cats??? or dogs??? for a simple reason that??? I don???t know what they are thinking and I hate that! But, even I wanted to pet and cuddle the cat while I was reading the book. It is a beautiful amalgamation of Buddha???s teachings and the feline characteristics which make it a loved pet of??? some people.

It made sense??? even if you hate the thought of spiritual or philosophical non-sense (no offence to believers), you would love this book. It doesn???t delve too much into Buddhism or try to give too many lectures. It subtly merges some of the enlightening thoughts of the religion with everyday life events??? Makes it more believable and adaptable to non believers like me.

I loved reading it and maybe someday would want to pick up the other titles from the author.

Darlene said...

There is a sequel with the same characters, including narration by the Dalai Lama's Cat. :-)