Book Review: Ghost Cats: Human Encounters with Feline Spirits by Dusty Rainbolt

"Some cats won't let a little thing like death separate them from their humans." ~ Dusty Rainbolt

Many cat lovers believe these amazing creatures possess mystical powers that reach beyond what we can see and touch. But can cats extend a paw from beyond the grave? Award-winning GHOST CATS is an original collection of heartwarming, and sometimes heart-stopping, accounts of cats who connected with their loved ones for a final time—ghost encounters of the feline kind.. From the chilling “Demon Cat of the Nation’s Capitol” to the comical “Phantom Litter Box” to the reassuring “Grungy’s Greeting”, there are feline phantasms for everyone.

And if you believe you have heard, seen or felt your very own departed kitty, author Dusty Rainbolt offers reasons why your best forever friend breeched that last, tenuous veil to reach you again.

This is a book I've been wanting to read for a long time so I was really excited to see a revised edition released just in time for Halloween. While reading it I couldn't help but feel a bit sad that despite the close bonds I form with them I've never had an afterlife encounter with one of my cats. Or maybe they've tried and I just haven't been open to it, who knows?

The book is broken into sections, from people who've had ghostly visits from cats they never knew, to others who are briefly reunited with their beloved companions one last time (which seems to occur most often when there's been a sudden, unexpected death where there was no chance to say good bye), to hotels and other locations known to have resident ghost cats.

My favorite story in the book is "Little Joe's Portrait" about a feral cat who lived at a refuge in Oregon. He forms a special bond with his caregiver and after being hit by a car and killed, she's devastated to come to the realization that she had never took a picture of him or any of the under cats in the colony. Just like so many of us, she assumed he would always be around. She immediately started taking pictures of all the cats, sent the film away to be processed, and was stunned to get them back and find Little Joe in one of the pictures next to the food bowls. The image is chilling. There's also the story of Tom Cat, Fort McAllister's mascot during the Civil War, killed on the battlefield; and a tiny tortie named Ms. P (short for Pitiful), who spent two decades as "security guard" in an antique shop.

If you love cats and believe that they always stay by your side even after we've been physically separated, this book will touch your heart and leave you looking for signs of their presence. Ghost Cats is comforting, historically fascinating, and at times simply heartbreaking, but in the end it's a book that needs to be in every cat lover's library.

This post contains Amazon affiliate links.