Tortie Shorties Book Reviews: A Pair of Cat Classics

Meows from Mudpie!

Today we're reviewing a pair of cat classics, dating back to the 1950s and 1970s. 

Mommy was born during one of those decades (the latter one) and I think she's a classic too!

Morris : An Intimate Biography by Mary Daniels

From the publisher: At last the intimate biography of one of today's most famous TV personalities-the feline superstar, Morris. In this authorized biography, Morris fully cooperates with Mary Daniels and discusses those details of his life he has been so reluctant to reveal in the past. Here is the truth about his discovery-only twenty minutes before he was to be put into his next life in a Chicago animal shelter, the facts behind the scandals that clouded Morris' pre-acting days, the circumstances behind his 9-Lives triumphs, ...and more.

Tortie Shorties Review: Anyone who loves the iconic Morris the Cat needs to track down a copy of his 1974 biography. I bought it to find a few little known facts about him for our recent Purrfect 10 post and soon found myself scouring YouTube to revisit all those classic commercials I loved growing up. My favorite stories included those about his mattress commercial debut which didn't go according to plan, details about his love life, and especially a very special moment that happened when he paid a visit to the shelter he was rescued from and placed back in the cage where he was discovered. There are a bunch of photos too including a devastatingly handsome centerfold that belongs on every ladycat's wall!

Space Cat by Ruthven Todd

From the publisher: A little gray kitten with a taste for adventure stows away on an airplane, and the daring stunt turns out to be his first step toward becoming … Space Cat! The plane's pilot, Captain Fred Stone, names his fuzzy new friend Flyball and welcomes him to an experimental station set up in the middle of the desert. Flyball enjoys supervising the station's workers and takes particular interest in the big rocket ship that he's not allowed to explore. Regardless of the rules, the kitty is determined to hitch another ride, and before you know it, Flyball's wearing a custom-made pressurized suit and headed for the Moon.

This new edition of a charmingly illustrated storybook from 1952 is the first of a four-book series starring the intrepid feline known as Space Cat. Young readers will delight in taking a look at space exploration from Flyball's point of view and following his escapades across the solar system.

Tortie Shorties Review: The allure of space travel captured the imagination of a nation in the 1950s, and I dare say it still does. The four books in this sweet series chronicling the adventures of a cat named Flyball and his human companion Captain Stone are being released this year to a new generation of readers and to those who wish they still had their childhood copies from decades ago. In Space Cat the dynamic duo visit the Moon and Flyball becomes an unlikely hero when disaster strikes hundreds of thousands of miles away from home. Obviously the science is quite outdated, but the story is still as charming as ever. The illustrations (especially those depicting Flyball in his space suit) are just adorable too. Space Cat is guaranteed to leave you thinking you see a cat's face when you look up at the moon tonight!

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