A review by jayisreading
We'll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida

emotional hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

This was a pretty cozy novel that will appeal to anyone who loves cats and finds comfort in their presence. The chapters were somewhat self-contained, the first four each focusing on a character struggling with some aspect of their life (whether it be about jobs or relationships), leading them to a clinic where they are prescribed a cat by a rather curious doctor. More curiously, the clinic only seemed to appear for those who looked hard enough for help, whether they realize that they need that help or not (and here is where that touch of magic realism comes into play). On another note, I was pleasantly surprised by how well Ishida described different cats’ personalities and appearances with great detail. I thought it added a nice dimension to the human–cat relationships that appeared throughout this novel.

With that said, I do think it’s best to enter this book with little to no expectations for there to be a compelling plot. While I was fine with the ambiguous nature of how the clinic functions, I found myself wanting more depth to better appreciate the ode to cats that Ishida wrote, because something about this novel felt unfinished. I was pretty taken to the first story, mainly because I didn’t know what to expect. By the end of the second story, though, it became apparent to me that each character’s journey toward healing would look similar, even though they were facing different issues. I also couldn’t quite understand the purpose of including what I thought was an unexpected development (of sorts) about Chitose and Dr. Nikké. It was tangentially related but didn’t quite fit with the rest of the book’s focus, so I found the fifth and final chapter rather odd in terms of suitability. Relatedly, I wanted far more elements of magic realism than what Ishida delivered. I can’t help but wonder if these are better addressed in the sequel, which I imagine will get an English translation eventually.

Overall, if you’re a cat lover in need of something heartwarming to read that doesn’t lean into anything complicated, We’ll Prescribe You a Cat will very much be up your alley. I do like cats and the occasional cozy story, but I personally found that there wasn’t nearly enough substance for me to find it entirely fun to read.

Note: I received an ARC through a giveaway. Many thanks to the publisher for sending me a copy.
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