At 38 years old, The Cat Who Saved the Library by Sosuke Natsukawa features a talking tabby cat named Tiger. It’s the sequel to The Cat Who Saved Books in which Tiger had a starring role.
Thirteen-year-old Nanami Kosaki suffers from chronic asthma that restricts her ability to play energetic sports. She’s an avid reader and spends hours at the local library. She notices a grey-suited man behaving furtively and is convinced he is stealing books. She mentions it to the librarian, explaining that wherever this man goes, there are gaps on the shelves. But the librarian dismisses her suspicions.
Nanami follows the suspect and this is the point where Tiger steps in and shouts, ‘Don’t!’ After getting over her surprise that a cat can talk, it is decided they should follow the man together. They set off on a fantastic adventure.
There is no coarse language or sex scenes in this book but there is an exciting bit of violence that’s thwarted by the arrival of Athos, Porthos and Aramis who, at a crucial time, jump out of Alexander Dumas’ novel The Three Musketeers. They ensure Nanami and the tabby cat escape.
This heart-warming fantasy novel has been translated from the Japanese by Louise Heal Kawai into easy-to-read prose, ideal for young adults. The thoughts expressed by 13-year-old Nanami are surprisingly profound, even for a child who is intelligent, well-read and, I suspect, has a vivid imagination.
Reviewed by Clive Hodges
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sosuke Natsukawa is a doctor in Nagano, Japan.
His first book Kamisama No Karute (‘God’s Medical Records’) won the Shogakukan Fiction Prize and received second prize at the Japan Bookseller Awards. It sold over 1.5 million copies and was adapted into a film in Japan.
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