the Ultimate Illustrated Guide
A showcase of some forty-seven cat breeds (I think there\’s a newer edition as someone else\’s review on LibraryThing mentioned fifty-one). It has a short intro with basics of a cat\’s body, very brief history of the species\’ evolution, and then a more detailed explanation of genetics that determine the many breeds\’ eye color, coat color and pattern, plus some of the unusual traits (like curled ears, bobbed tails or hairlessness). I read through the entire section on genetics because hey, I like to learn stuff- but I did not get it. I felt like the author, who herself is a cat breeder, knows the subject so well she doesn\’t realize how little ordinary people grasp it. I then read the entire glossary so I\’d understand all the unfamiliar words, and some of it is still incomprehensible to me. Well, that\’s fine, because the photographs by Tetsu Yamazaki are really what make this book stunning. Most of the book is breed profiles, many with two or three pages showing different colors and expressions of the breed, very beautiful and expressive pictures. My nine-year-old demanded that I give her this book when she caught me in the middle of reading it, because she wanted to look at all the adorable kitties! (I refused and loaned her my cat encyclopedia for bedtime reading; tonight we\’re going to trade).
2 Responses
That thing about the Manx cats is sad! I knew they were tailless cats, but I never really knew why.
Yes. I wonder if nowadays there is some sort of screening they can do genetically, to avoid having the stillborn kittens?