Reviews

Les Mémoires d'un chat by Hiro Arikawa

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dustea's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

olivia_coleman's review against another edition

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3.75

This book was just alright yet I was not the target audience. I read this for book club I don’t think I would have ever picked this out myself. My favorite part of this book is when the cat refers to dry cat kibble as crunchies. This books was essentially broken up into four reflections/nostalgic retellings of different stories of friendship in the main character life weaved in with some parts of modern day. I was not a big fan of the short story feeling that gave. I also found the book to be slightly unbelievable because of how well behaved the cat was, how accommodating the world was to cats and how the main character never seemed upset or mad at the world for the cards he was drawn

emabled's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

"How could I ever leave him, having experienced that kind of love? I will never, ever, leave him."

This was a refreshingly bittersweet story. Any animal lover will enjoy the anthropomorphic imagining of cats and dogs alike alongside a compelling narrative journey.

I am really glad that, even though this is a translation and the language is not in its original context, the voice of Nana the cat remained so strong. I think the snarky voice is why I loved this story so much. The plot was really interesting as a baseline, but the quality of writing otherwise didn't stand out to me. Yet, the voice and characterizations were wonderful. Every named character had a flushed out story--- not everyone was equally dynamic but none of them fell flat. The composition of everything made this easily digestible and also very easy to connect with.

There were a handful of logical inconsistencies I found, but they didn't overwhelm or falter my understanding of the timeline, so it was easy enough to ignore them. I did also think that there was a lot of potential for... more? It's not that this story was empty, but I think that it could have been a bit longer. In terms of the people Satoru was implied to know, I feel like I barely got a glimpse into that life. I wish we knew more named characters, even in passing, that he charmed his way into friendship with! I also think that the ending (as in the chapter before the epilogue) was slightly rushed, but I did appreciate the actual conclusion.

It was a little cheesy at parts, but overall meaningful. Both sad and joyful, relatable and intimate, and real and imaginative, this book was so fun and beautiful. Definitely recommend it.