Cover Design: Deb Snibson
Permission to use images and text
should be directed to Spinifex Press

Cat Tales
The Meaning of Catss in Women's Lives

Jan Fook, Susan Hawthorne and Renate Klein (Eds)

Price: $32.95 (Australian dollars),
$19.95 (US dollars),
$32.95 (Canadian dollars),
$48.95 (NZ dollars),
£13.95 (UK pounds)


"Happiness is being owned by a cat." -Evelyn Moseley

Women and cats go back millennia - from ancient Egypt, Assyria and India to the contemporary world of women whose lives are enriched by cats. The contributors to this volume explore the ways that cats create atmosphere, how some cats have household staff. There are stray cats and Amazon cats, cats stuck on poles and windowsills, farm cats, feral cats and city cats. There are cats who can open fridges, sign contracts and cats in drag. With contributors from Australia, USA, Turkey, New Zealand, Thailand, England, Germany, Canada and Switzerland, these women and girls write about their friendships with cats.
Cat Tales Contents

Section 1: CATachievers
1.01 Lin Van Hek
1.02 Diane Fahey
1.03 Lorraine Williams
1.04 Suzanne Bellamy
1.05 Melinda Tankard Reist
1.06 June Kant
1.07 Annabel Fagan
1.08 Helen Litchfield
1.09 Cathie Dunsford
1.10 Caroline Taylor
1.11 Beryl Fletcher

Section 2: CATalogues
2.01 Thelma Solomon
2.02 Susan Wiseheart
2.03 Bronwyn Whitlocke
2.04 Caz Brown
2.05 Susan Hawthorne
2.06 Kate Munro
2.07 Emma Inturatana Rice and Pranee Liamputtong
2.08 Bronwyn Winter
2.09 Cheryl Osborne
2.10 Alexandra Rees
2.11 Barbara Becker, Jan Weate and Sal Hampson

Section 3: CATastrophes
3.01 Sandy Jeffs
3.02 Jan Thorburn
3.03 Heather McPherson
3.04 Dahlia Levy
3.05 Beth Burrows
3.06 Marg Young
3.07 Janine Le Couteur
3.08 Jill Wilson
3.09 Coral Hull
3.10 Dawn Osborne
3.11 Ellen Redding Kaler
3.12 Lyn McConchie
3.13 Sandra Schurle
3.14 Sheryl Topperwien

Section 4: CATalysts
4.01 Evelyn Moseley
4.02 Lesley Higgs and Jenny Kelly
4.03 Liselotte Lassig
4.04 Marilyn Mitchell
4.05 Claire Pickard
4.06 Conchita Fonseca
4.07 Fide Erken
4.08 Lucy Sussex
4.09 Anne Quain
4.10 Alison Ritter
4.11 Jacqueline Crompton Ottaway
4.12 Karen Atkinson
4.13 Patricia Best
4.14 Lavender
4.15 Deb Doyle
4.16 Susan Wills
4.17 Finola Geraghty
4.18 Diane Helliker
4.19 Heather Cameron

Section 5: CATacombs
5.01 Bridget Musters
5.02 Cath McNaughton
5.03 Maika Greene (formerly Ginger Ekselman)
5.04 Terry Wolverton
5.05 Jo Stavros
5.06 Suniti Namjoshi
5.07 Kerry Greenwood
5.08 Margaret Fearn
5.09 Martha Davidson
5.10 Lesley Fowler

Section 6: AristoCATs
6.01 Marge Piercy
6.02 Cathy Saba
6.03 Patricia Sykes
6.04 Di Brown
6.05 Elizabeth Dias
6.06 Koa Whittingham
6.07 Kim Mann
6.08 Ruth Blaikie
6.09 Aileen Kelly
6.10 Rose Kizinska
6.11 Coralie McLean
6.12 Rebecca Anderson
6.13 Nancy Winters
Any cat-loving woman will adore this collection of photographs andstories about women and their beloved cats. There's clever Tiki who travelled one hundred kilometres back to her home after the family moved,only to travel all the way back again. There's Gertrude, much-loved by her owner despite being rather mean and neurotic, and Annapurna, the cat who could not meow. Through their cats, we learn about the women, some saved from loneliness and depression, others heartened and comforted by these miraculous animals. Handsomely designed, this delightful book contains stories, reflections and poems from women all over the world including Marge Piercy and Kerry Greenwood. - Readings Summer Reading Guide

Praise for the popular A Girl's Best Friend

‘Finally a dog book to recommend unequivocally’ – Debra Adelaide, Sydney Morning Herald