...The structure of The Travelling Cat Chronicles is deceptively simple. With alternating sections of third-person and Nana-the-cat narration, it consists of three journeys to friends, followed by a pilgrimage across a beautifully evoked landscape ... anyone who has ever unashamedly loved an animal will read this book with gratitude, for its understanding of an emotion that ennobles us as human beings, whether we value it or not.
...Satoru adopts a cat and names him Nana, and the two live happily together for many years. This novel is often told from the perspective of Nana, whose sassy commentary about the world he lives in is incredibly charming and smart. Reality hits hard, however, when, for reasons unclear to Nana, Satoru must find the cat a new home. Satoru will not entrust Nana’s care to just anyone, and so begins a journey across Japan in a silver van as the two visit Satoru’s old friends ...Arikawa’s novel...boasts vivid and well-rendered characters in the midst of trying to do what’s best for those they love the most.
The Travelling Cat Chronicles is no less valuable for facing issues of friendship, family, loss, and grief with an optimistic and loving outlook. In fact, the book's greatest strength is that it allows its readers to experience vicarious happiness even as a sense of impending loss begins to creep through the pages ... I found myself sobbing through the last 40 pages or so, unable, unwilling, to let this joyful little book go. I doubt many readers — as cynical and hardened as they may be — will get through it dry-eyed themselves. And you know what? Sometimes a good happy-sad cry is just what the doctor ordered.
...cats have the upper hand when it comes to observation, and make for fine narrators, which is the case in Hiro Arikawa’s bestselling novel ... It has the warmth, painterly touch, and tenderness of a Studio Ghibli film — and is a delight to read.
In the wrong hands, a story like this could be little more than an entertaining curiosity, but Arikawa has a lightness of touch in her writing that elevates it to a tale about loyalty and friendship, eschewing sentimentality while speaking to our basic human need for companionship ... it provides a fascinating insight into Japanese culture and traditions, but ultimately it doesn’t matter that it’s about a man and a cat. Like Of Mice and Men or The Kite Runner, Arikawa’s central concern is friendship and the things we’ll do for the people, or animals, that we love.
The book may be written in a simple and plain style, but don’t let that fool you; Arikawa may be disingenuous sometimes, but she does have some serious things to say in this book, and they are worth saying ... Arikawa’s double narrative works very well ... The success of Arikawa’s novel is her knack for making cats believable.
...winsome and bittersweet ... Arikawa clearly knows cats as well as any human can ... That understanding of the wariness of feline affection–and its ability to grow, over time, into a thrumming force as deep as a throaty purr–drives this fleet, funny and tender book ... But her book stands out within the world of cat literature even so, and it’s a world worth exploring.
This book could easily become twee, but somehow it never quite does, and what we're left with is a man and his cat on a road trip, some stories of the man's life and friends, and a beautiful travelogue ... funny and sweet.
The sections in which we find out how and why Satoru came to love these people provide more than incidental backstory. In fact, some of Arikawa’s best storytelling happens in these passages ... Occasionally, Nana’s understanding of the human world feels like a bit of a stretch ... It may make you cry, just a little, but it will also make you take stock of your friendships and ask yourself: If you could take a road trip to be reunited with just a few people from your past, whom would you visit?
Nana, a stray cat adopted by 30-something Satoru Miyawaki, narrates this lovely tale by Arikawa of the travels that the pair take when Satoru must look for a new home for Nana ... After five years together, Satoru comes to the conclusion that he has to find a new home for Nana and so arranges a series of meetings with friends from his youth ... Each of his friends is willing to take in Nana, but in the end, none of them proves to be right for the cat ... Readers will perhaps pick up on the reason that Satoru must find Nana a new home before the cat does, but Arikawa is very subtle with this plotline. This touching novel of a brave cat and his gentle, wise human will resonate with lovers of animal tales, quiet stories of friendship, and travelogues alike.
Despite its seeming simplicity, the novel contains surprising depth. Arikawa artfully portrays Nana’s 'catness,' from the subtle flick of an ear to a lashing tail ... Gentle, soft-spoken, and full of wisdom.
