She and Her Cat – Book Review
She and Her Cat – Makoto Shinkai. Published by Penguin Books
“The heartbeats of she, me and the world pulsed together as one.”
She and Her Cat is the debut novel from Makoto Shinkai, filmmaker of the incredibly popular film Your Name. The Japanese bestseller is set in a neighbourhood on the outskirts of Tokyo.
The book is split into four sections that follow the seasons. Each story follows a cat and its owner, starting with little Chobi and his owner, Miyu.
They help each other through breakups, new relationships and all other kinds of hardship. The stories are relatable and uplifting, with the cats bringing together all kinds of people from this neighbourhood.
The prose is beautiful, building a tiny little world from the point of view of the cats and then suddenly making the world much bigger when the point of view switches to their owners.
The exploration of themes such as community and the companionship that everyone longs for is done incredibly. The story follows birth and death and the continued need to help the people around you.
Each of the women that the novel follows is wonderfully unique, providing a brilliant change of pace every time the story switches. From quiet and meek Miyu to loud, brash and creative Reina, each character has something different going for them that makes their story and their companionship with their cats wonderfully compelling.
Other themes that seem to permeate the pages of the book include the idea that the world is a fundamentally good place, with characters learning to enjoy the little things in life as they search out their ultimate goal in life.
The characters were also fundamentally relatable. From taking a million pictures of their pets to having to completely re-evaluate their future and even the difficulties of losing the people who mean the most.
The images printed in the book at the turn of each season are beautiful and tie the aesthetic of the story into the physical book. They each show the character that the section follows alone in their home, the place where they feel the safest and the most relaxed, being kept company in their solitude by their ever-loyal feline companions.
If you like cats then this is the book for you, a perfect look into the strange mind of your furry friend. If you don’t like cats, this book is still for you. The insight and care that these animals show might just be enough to change your mind.
