Posted: October 16, 2009, 3 a.m. EDT
There’s a new cat on the bookshelves, and he’s a remarkable fellow.
His name is Homer; the veterinarian who treated him as a homeless stray kitten had to remove his infected eyes to save his life. She tried for weeks to find someone to adopt him, and got refusals and excuses. But when writer Gwen Cooper saw him, she immediately said, “I’m taking him home.”
What a fortunate situation for both Cooper and Homer. The little
black cat’s resilience, intelligence and spirit have allowed him to flourish despite his blindness; Cooper’s love and compassion for him – and her two other cats – are an inspiration.
But in her new book, “Homer’s Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned About Love and Life With a Blind Wonder Cat,” Cooper writes that it is Homer who is the inspiration. She writes about him: “In a seemingly hopeless situation, when no rational person could expect anything good, yet somehow ends up receiving everything good – these are the things we call miracles and wonders.”
One of the most harrowing parts of this finely written book is Cooper’s description of the events on Sept. 11, 2001, when she left her apartment and three cats in New York’s Financial District to go to work. She was forced out of the city after the attacks on the World Trade Center, and her battle to get back to her cats after they had spent days without food or water is heroic.
“I am Homer’s eyes. And he is my heart,” Cooper writes.
No doubt Homer will find a place in the heart of everyone who reads this book.
Read more Cat Scene by clicking here.
Read more Cat Blogs by clicking here.