Poetry for Cats: The Definitive Anthology of Distinguished Feline Verse

by Henry N. Beard

Book Overview

In the vein of his bestselling French for Cats, Henry Beard has assembled a brilliant anthology of treasured works by feline poets. Includes "Do Not Go Gentle to That Damned Vet" by Dylan Thomas's... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0679435824
• ISBN13: 9780679435822
• Release Date: October 1994
• Publisher: Villard Books
• Length: 86 Pages
• Weight: 0.53 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.3" x 7.3"

Customer Reviews

brilliant!

Henry Beard has both a good knowledge of the original poems and of cats. His spoofs are tremendously clever, and he chooses the most common poems in English literature, so most people will recognize them. I laughed myself nearly sick. It's as good as jogging! ;-)

Clever and Inspired

This book is funny in and of itself; however, if you are familiar with the poems on which these are based, you're in for a special treat. Beard doesn't just substitute words: his premise is that the poets' cats wrote these poems, which makes "She Walks In Booties" or "Abyssinias" even more feline, er, sublime...

A true classic

This is one of the funniest things I've read in years. Beard, as usual, is masterful in his parody. In this case he takes on great poetry ranging from "Beowulf" to "Xanadu" to "Song of Myself" and and "Howl", not to mention every age and genre in between.Not only is the parody marvellous, but Beard captures the very soul and essence of the cat. (If you read nothing else, read "The End of the Raven")As if that weren't enough, the book has also made me go back and reread many of the original works, most of which I haven't looked at in years, some of which I'd never read. Who knew that "The Emperor of Tuna Fish" would lead me to a deeper appreciation for the original work, "The Emperor of Ice Cream"?If you like poetry, or you like cats, or you like poetry written by cats, read this book.

Great for both poetry fans and cat fans.

This is an amazingly clever book! Beard takes famous poems and changes them to fit the cat perspective, making a poem that is often and well done as the original famous piece. Not only is this a gem for poetry lovers and fans of satire, but it is also great for cat-lovers: this book speaks well and truly about these wonderful animals.

A furball is a furball is a furball

In undergraduate school one of my English professors used to photocopy good poetry parodies for us. When she photocopied Henry Beard's "The End of the Raven," I was smitten for life. This is a wonderful little book. Beard keeps the original meter and rhyming scheme of the poems parodied and it is priceless to compare the two side by side. A gem of a book for anyone who appreciates keen wit and a masterful command of the English language. After all, who could possibly not fall in love with someone who declares, "Do not go gentle to that damn vet/ Hide, hide when your appointment date is set" ?