The Autobiography of a Granada Cat: As told to Harley White "They call me Mama-cat and I answer to it, so I suppose that is my name, though it wasn't always. I was born in Andalusia, southern Spain, in Granada, an area that is hot in summer and cold in winter." So begins the picaresque, picturesque tale, true in the telling by its feline protagonist. Her lodging had been the street, along with all its dangers and discomforts, in magical Granada, whose charms were not entirely lost on this resourceful feline, even when in the throes of her own troubles. She describes the old city on the hill, with its labyrinth of narrow winding lanes, often sinister in their twists and turns, the Albaicín's spectacular vistas and crumbling old-style Arabic abodes, full of tourists and passers-by, thieves and outcasts, bohemians, donkeys, dogs, etc. Most of these houses had balconies, now in disrepair, upon which we could enjoy peering down on the streets from above. Or perhaps, if in need of inspiration, we could gaze at the graceful Alhambra Palace, with the serene Sierra Nevada mountains behind." Many original photos and illustrations accompany the text, putting the reader into the picture as the yarn unfolds. One eventful day a US couple is adopted by her to share their home: "From this day forward, I would be known as Mama-cat. (...) ...my context was one of belonging. I might say that I began to enjoy novel feelings of security, pleasure, and, yes, happiness. I even started to purr, certainly an expression of the carefree demeanor that was becoming an attribute of my evolving house-cat personality." A worldly-wise versatile feline, Mama-cat is part philosopher and quite well-versed culturally besides, especially where cats are concerned. She enjoys quoting notables, such as... "'Do you see that kitten chasing so prettily her own tail? If you look with her eyes, you might see her surrounded with hundreds of figures performing complex dramas, with tragic and comic issues, long conversations, many characters, many ups and downs of fate.' So said Ralph Waldo Emerson." Mama-cat does indeed render her colorful world visible, depicting its grandeur and pettiness, portraying its various and sundry inhabitants, bringing its sounds and sensations to vivid life. We are Mama-cat. We suffer her sadness, feel her fears and frustrations, delight in her joys. Mama-cat not only relates her own chronicle, but that of her "lady" as well. Tragedies like the loss of her kittens and periods of deep despair echo those her mistress undergoes in seeming synchronicity. She plumbs her experiences for profounder meanings and reverberations, sharing her reflections and musings with those who care to see and hear, while never veering from her own particular perspective of being the cat she is. And her empathy with her mistress is absolute and instinctive, even if frequently uncomprehending. Mama-cat is proud of her kind... "It is worth mentioning as well that the supreme artistic giant, Leonardo da Vinci, affirmed, 'The smallest feline is a masterpiece.'" And again... "Mark Twain asserted unequivocally, 'If a man could be crossed with the cat, it would improve the man but deteriorate the cat.'-- no comment from me." Yet she is also humble regarding her fate, dismayed by the inconsistencies of humanity... The great affection she and the lady hold for one another rises above all and dissolves the distinctions of their species. She is part of a whole web of realities of cause and effect... "If there is any impression I would wish my autobiography to engender it may be that there are deep dimensions of love (and spheres of its opposites) which resonate eternally -- bonds of connectedness that even death cannot destroy." And, ultimately, the cycle continues... for, in the end, "... the waves of life and death roll on, as they have for thousands of years and shall for thousands more ..." A "Must Read" for all cat and great literature lovers.