avesmaria 's review for:

Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World by Vicki Myron

3.0

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I expected this book to be silly and/or boring, but honestly, I enjoyed it, even though I would describe it as a feel-good read with kind of a parochial edge. It's about a cat abandoned in a library book drop on a cold January morning, and also about the library director, Vicki Myron, who found him, nursed him to health, and convinced the library board to have him stay at the library as cat-in-residence. Predictably, the cat goes on to be adorable and win the hearts of nearly everyone in the small town of Spencer, Iowa, eventually achieving worldwide popularity. I actually thought the most interesting parts of the book were Myron talking about her own life and her family's lives, and her struggles with health, divorce, and death. Dewey, a very affectionate and remarkable cat, was there for her and everyone at the library during personal struggles (in a way that all pet owners understand), and he becomes a real-life metaphor and example of the support and closeness Myron describes among her family and friends that is so central to the character of her beloved homeland. I'm noticing a lot of reviewers found the narrator annoying/grating, but I guess I wasn't expecting great literature from a woman who doesn't write for a living, so you have to take this book for what it is.