“They say that the test of literary power is whether a man can write an inscription.
I say, ‘Can he name a kitten?"
Samuel Butler (1835-1902)

The lives of many authors have been touched by our feline friends over the years and their literature tends to reflect the human fascination with, and attraction to, the unique combination of qualities that define them.

Given the somewhat autocratic nature of cats, it is perhaps fitting that one of the earliest literary notations dedicated to a cat was from the inscriber for the Royal Tombs at Thebes who wrote, “Thou art the Great Cat, the avenger of the Gods, and the judge of words, and the president of the sovereign chiefs and the governor of the holy Circle; thou art indeed...the Great Cat."...

The attributes that we commonly associate with cats serve both to tantalize and torment cat lovers and haters alike and are reiterated in verbal descriptions of aloofness, pride, independence and beauty in literature. Many of the most well known writers have strayed from their usual literary path to include poetry and prose in recognition of cats large and small, a small sample of which follows...

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