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5th out of 299 books
—
1,002 voters
The Cat Who Could Read Backwards (Cat Who... #1)
More than thirty years ago, Lilian Jackson Braun wrote The Cat Who Could Read Backwards and launched the phenomenally successful Cat Who... mystery series. In it we are introduced to the extraordinary detective team of prize-winning reporter Jim Qwilleran and Koko, the brilliant Siamese cat. Jim Qwilleran is somewhat disgruntled when his assignment for the Daily Fluxion is...more
Paperback, 256 pages
Published
August 5th 2003
by Berkley Trade
(first published 1966)
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I am surprised in a way at finding myself giving a "series mystery" book four stars (since I make it a point to hand out very few "5s" that's a big score for me). I don't read a lot of mysteries and only ran across MS. Braun because I was looking for audio books for my wife. She was in ill health for a long time and had trouble holding and later seeing to read text, so I was constantly scouring the public library shelves and used book stores for audio books. Sometimes I would take them to work w...more
This is the first book of "The Cat Who" series. I've read the series previously and enjoyed it, my kind of mind-candy. It's fun and relatively light but gives you the opportunity to stretch your brain just a little over the whodunit.
These are less complex than Agatha Christie's mysteries but Braun does paint an interesting community of characters, not only in the protagonist and his cats but in the townsfolk as well. Seeing that unfold throughout the series is probably one of the biggest draws...more
These are less complex than Agatha Christie's mysteries but Braun does paint an interesting community of characters, not only in the protagonist and his cats but in the townsfolk as well. Seeing that unfold throughout the series is probably one of the biggest draws...more
2 likes · like · see review
I read this years ago and enjoyed reading it again. I love the characters, particularly Jim Qwilleran and the cat that he meets in this story. Those two are especially likeable. Naturally, since the book was written in 1966, it has an old-fashioned feel to it, but I didn't mind that. And the murder mystery turns out to be a little more complicated than I expected. Well, yes, it was a long, long time ago that I first read the story and I'd forgotten how it ended.
I want to mention, too, that the c...more
I want to mention, too, that the c...more
I was browsing at the library audio CD section, when I ran across several of "The Cat Who . . ." books. I remember reading one many years ago in a Reader's Digest Condensed Books book. It was so long ago, that I don't remember which one it was, but I liked it. So I sat at a computer, and did a little research to begin at the beginning. This is the first story and was published in 1966. I was still in school then. The story moves along, and introduces her main character, Jim Qwilleran. He is gett...more
Oct 07, 2012
rabbitprincess
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
cat lovers who enjoy light reads
It's the early 1960s, and journalist Jim Qwilleran (friend of the oppressed, bane of typesetters everywhere) is eager to get back into the newspaper game. A happy coincidence leads him into the employ of the Daily Fluxion, where he is assigned to the art beat. To a seasoned crime reporter, this does not seem to bode well in terms of excitement. But this is before he encounters his highly polarizing critic colleague, the backstabbing world of local artists, the museum theft, and a murder. Qwill's...more
Jim Qwilleran needs a job. Though his training and preference is the crime beat, he'll take what he can get. That means being the new art writer for the Features section of the Daily Fluxion. Qwilleran knows beans about art, but in talking with local artists, gallery owners and bartenders, he learns one important thing very quickly - no one likes George Bonifield Mountclemens III, the current art critic for the Flux. He's considered arrogant, he gives scathing reviews, and he ruins careers. Exce...more
Written in 1966, Lilian Jackson Braun’s The Cat Who Could Read Backwards is certainly not the oldest book I’ve ever read, nor is it one of the best books I’ve ever read, but it was unique because of one of the main characters. Koko the Siamese cat, who can read a freshly published newspaper backwards by tracing the letters and who has a knack for uncovering clues that piece together difficult crimes. This book in a way reminded me of an Alfred Hitchcock film – a lot of build up to a brief yet ex...more
3 likes · like · see review
"5" For feline entertainment, about a "3" for mystery technique.
I used to love these novels when I was in high school [some 13 years ago] and decided to rent them from the library again from sheer nostalgia. It was as entertaining as I remember it being, from the point of view of an openly excited reader and a cat-lover to boot.
The introduction of Qwill to KoKo is more poignant than I remember it being, simply because he [KoKo] is a bit more of a snob, being with his previous owner - a rather se...more
I used to love these novels when I was in high school [some 13 years ago] and decided to rent them from the library again from sheer nostalgia. It was as entertaining as I remember it being, from the point of view of an openly excited reader and a cat-lover to boot.
The introduction of Qwill to KoKo is more poignant than I remember it being, simply because he [KoKo] is a bit more of a snob, being with his previous owner - a rather se...more
This the first in the “Cat Who…” series. It is were we meet Jim Qwilleran, prize winning newspaper reporter. He has had a bit of a rough time in the past few years – not much is said as to what the problem was, but he only drinks tomato juice, his wife has left him, and all he can hope for is a job reporting on the art scene for the Daily Fluxion. There is a mysterious art critic, George Bonifield Mountclemens, already commenting on the actual art – Jim is expected to work on the human interest...more
"Don't judge a book by its cover" was definitely something I kept in mind while reading this book. While it wasn't a total 180 of what I expected, it was unexpected enough for me to not mind enjoying what I expected to be a totally substance-free "fluff" book. It is, after all, a mystery series based on the premise that a cat who has the ability to read newspaper headlines solves mysteries for the unwitting humans around it. Luckily, it was a little more interesting than that.
While many synopse...more
While many synopse...more
Nov 24, 2010
Lisa (Harmonybites)
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
Cat Lovers
Recommended to Lisa (Harmonybites) by:
The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Ultimate Reading List
This was an enjoyable novel, and I'd probably rate it higher if I were more of a cat lover. So many mysteries, it seems, depend on a gimmick; I've seen everything from quilting to recipes to herb lore. The gimmick in this novel, the first of the "Cat Who Could" series, is a supercat, Koko, a regal Siamese cat who can almost talk--although he doesn't appear until page 71. The human half of the team whose perspective leads us through the story is Jim Qwilleran, veteran reporter. Divorced and a rec...more
Fine 1st entree in long running series for cat/mystery fans...
With nearly two dozen novels in "The Cat Who..." series, Braun has obviously struck a chord with mystery and cat lovers. Almost a classic yarn in the ilk of Elliot Queen, there's no sex and no profanity in this nice clean straightforward story of three murders -- a puzzling whodunit. Jim Qwilleran is introduced as the leading man; an accomplished journalist, he takes an "Art Beat" job with a small paper for which he's hardly qualifie...more
With nearly two dozen novels in "The Cat Who..." series, Braun has obviously struck a chord with mystery and cat lovers. Almost a classic yarn in the ilk of Elliot Queen, there's no sex and no profanity in this nice clean straightforward story of three murders -- a puzzling whodunit. Jim Qwilleran is introduced as the leading man; an accomplished journalist, he takes an "Art Beat" job with a small paper for which he's hardly qualifie...more
3 likes · like · see review
One of the things that has stuck out to me over the course of my life, is that wherever I go.. there will always be a "Cat Who...." book on the shelf of the local bookstore. So recently I decided to sit down with the first of the series to give it a gander.
I was taken completely by surprise by the fact that the first three books of this series were written in the 1960s. It seems that she wrote the first three, and then came back to the series over twenty years later. Having been a fan of Crime...more
I was taken completely by surprise by the fact that the first three books of this series were written in the 1960s. It seems that she wrote the first three, and then came back to the series over twenty years later. Having been a fan of Crime...more
2 likes · like · see review
Jim Qwilleran, the sometime sports writer, police reporter, war correspondent, winner of publishers trophy and proud owner of a large pepper and salt moustache is starting over as art writer. That's what the daily fluxion is offering and middle aged out of work reporters cannot be too choosy.
It's not long, however before the varnish begins to crack on the glossy art world that is Qwilleran's new beat. Soon, he finds the art world to be as tricky as his old crime watch - and twice as dangerous.
W...more
It's not long, however before the varnish begins to crack on the glossy art world that is Qwilleran's new beat. Soon, he finds the art world to be as tricky as his old crime watch - and twice as dangerous.
W...more
Aug 28, 2009
Melissa
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
mystery fans, particularly of Rita Mae Brown's Mrs. Murphy mysteries
Shelves:
mysteries,
favorite-authors-series
This is not the first time I read this book, but it has been a long time. I still enjoyed it though was slightly put off by some of the veiled references to lesbianism. (Her name is Butchy and a character says something about how she's "one of them" or "like that"--I can't remember exactly who said it or when.) It wasn't necessarily disparaging, intentional or otherwise, but it was a sad reminder that when the book was published in 1966, homosexuality was still considered abnormal. Aside from th...more
Book Review: The Cat Who Could Read Backwards @ai-books
Jim Qwilleran was assigned as the art writer for the Daily Fluxion although he knew not much about it. Daily Fluxion had one art critique, George Bonifield Mountclemens.
As Qwilleran began to learn more of local arts, he discovered that not many of the artists like the art critique. Because of that, he was curious to know who the art critique is and wanted to meet him. Soon, he started to befriend with the Mountclemens and his Siamese cat, K...more
Jim Qwilleran was assigned as the art writer for the Daily Fluxion although he knew not much about it. Daily Fluxion had one art critique, George Bonifield Mountclemens.
As Qwilleran began to learn more of local arts, he discovered that not many of the artists like the art critique. Because of that, he was curious to know who the art critique is and wanted to meet him. Soon, he started to befriend with the Mountclemens and his Siamese cat, K...more
I was going to give this cosy little mystery story four stars; but when the killer was revealed, I had no clue who this person was. The name only appeared once in the story that I can recall. Jim Qwilleran, a former seasoned crime reporter begins a new job with The Daily Fluxion on the art beat. He rents an apartment from a future murder victim named George Bonifield Mountclemens III. There he meets Mountclemens's siamese cat named Kao K'o-Kung which Qwilleran nicknames Koko. Qwilleran's assignm...more
My first foray into this author's work.
The good: Her writing style is excellent. Clear, crisp, and bright. I enjoyed her use of even basic words. The quirkiness grew a little tiresome, but did not overstay its welcome. Koko was portrayed very well.
The bad: What little plot there is takes forever to get going. The first murder is after page 100, breaking a cardinal rule of murder mysteries (that the murder should happen in the first 50). None of the characters are particularly fleshed out, and mo...more
The good: Her writing style is excellent. Clear, crisp, and bright. I enjoyed her use of even basic words. The quirkiness grew a little tiresome, but did not overstay its welcome. Koko was portrayed very well.
The bad: What little plot there is takes forever to get going. The first murder is after page 100, breaking a cardinal rule of murder mysteries (that the murder should happen in the first 50). None of the characters are particularly fleshed out, and mo...more
- The Cat Who Books -
I first discovered the "Cat Who" books as a teen in one of those happy accidents that our favorite books are often stumbled upon for the first time. I don't remember which library I first made this chance discovery in, but I do remember the first one I read, it was The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts. I am an avid lover of ghost stories and this proved interesting. It was, and when I found out that it was only one book in a series of many, I procured a great many of them from a u...more
I first discovered the "Cat Who" books as a teen in one of those happy accidents that our favorite books are often stumbled upon for the first time. I don't remember which library I first made this chance discovery in, but I do remember the first one I read, it was The Cat Who Talked to Ghosts. I am an avid lover of ghost stories and this proved interesting. It was, and when I found out that it was only one book in a series of many, I procured a great many of them from a u...more
It was really fun to delve back into early Qwilleran. This is the book where he meets Koko! I think it might even bee the first Cat Who... novel. And he gets his first job at the Fluxion on the art beat, and of course there's crime and wonderfulness. The plot was excellent as usual, but what I liked most is the description of the Fluxion offices, because it reminded me of scenes from Mad Men. The book was written in 1966, after all! Qwilleran hasn't even started faxing his copy to the paper yet....more
My parents got me interested in the Cat Who series. This is the first book in the series.
Jim Qwilleran joins the Daily Fluxion as an art expert. As he begins to explore of the local art scene, he discovers that most of the artists are not happy with the paper because of the art critic name Mountclemens.
Qwilleran gets to the know the critic. He even moves into the apartment downstairs. He wonders if he was invited only to do odd jobs like taking care of Mountclemens' cat Kao K'o-Kung, or Koko for...more
Jim Qwilleran joins the Daily Fluxion as an art expert. As he begins to explore of the local art scene, he discovers that most of the artists are not happy with the paper because of the art critic name Mountclemens.
Qwilleran gets to the know the critic. He even moves into the apartment downstairs. He wonders if he was invited only to do odd jobs like taking care of Mountclemens' cat Kao K'o-Kung, or Koko for...more
Aug 02, 2011
Amy Palmer
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Recommends it for:
cat lovers, fans of cozy mysteries
"The Cat Who Could Read Backwards" is the first book in the lengthy series by recently deceased author Lilian Jackson Braun. First published in 1966, this book kicked off a series of 29 books featuring newspaper reporter Jim Qwilleran.
In this first book, Koko the Siamese cat (who can read newspaper headlines backwards) does not actually belong to Qwilleran, but belongs to his landlord and art critic at the Daily Fluxion, George Bonifield Mountclemens. Qwilleran also works at the Daily Fluxion bu...more
In this first book, Koko the Siamese cat (who can read newspaper headlines backwards) does not actually belong to Qwilleran, but belongs to his landlord and art critic at the Daily Fluxion, George Bonifield Mountclemens. Qwilleran also works at the Daily Fluxion bu...more
I've read a bunch of The Cat Who... in the order I've found them or they have happened in my eyes.
Only after I recently read The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern, did I discover that the oldest ones are very different. (And adorable)
The first 3 were published between 1966 and 1968, and the rest of the books 20+ years after that.
The world in which Qwill lives is rather different. A small town newspaper - even the physical phones have changed so much since the book was written. The main tool was typewrit...more
Only after I recently read The Cat Who Ate Danish Modern, did I discover that the oldest ones are very different. (And adorable)
The first 3 were published between 1966 and 1968, and the rest of the books 20+ years after that.
The world in which Qwill lives is rather different. A small town newspaper - even the physical phones have changed so much since the book was written. The main tool was typewrit...more
The mystery plot is decent but it took awhile to get going. The resolution felt extremely rushed and was a bit out of left field, which I don't enjoy in a murder mystery.
The book was written in the 1960's so parts of it are predictably dated. An electric pencil sharpener is a shocking piece of cutting edge technology. There's a very casual attitude to smoking and getting on a plane involves a lot less security. Also, I was very confused about a clue until I remembered that an electric clock is...more
The book was written in the 1960's so parts of it are predictably dated. An electric pencil sharpener is a shocking piece of cutting edge technology. There's a very casual attitude to smoking and getting on a plane involves a lot less security. Also, I was very confused about a clue until I remembered that an electric clock is...more
This is the first book in the popular 'The Cat Who..' series which has over 19 books to date. Braun has created a title character (Qwill) who is entertaining, witty and fun to follow. Although the first murder occurs approximately 100 pages into the book, Braun introduces many flamboyant characters that keep the story flowing. I have no experience in the art scene but from what I hear, her depictions of artists (quirky, narcissistic, jealous) is right on target. Written in 1966, Qwill investigat...more
I work at a public library and had laughed at what I considered to be soft-boiled mysteries for old women. Turns out I was right but I loved it so much specifically for that reason. The protagonist being a mustachioed down-to-earth guy surprised me as the lead in a mystery involving a cat. I really wanted to see how a felid would go about solving a crime and I was satisfied with the Siamese's involvement being kept ambiguous so we can wonder if James, the main character, is reading into the anim...more
I am VERY disappointed by the murderer in this book.
SPOILER ALERT:
Isn't there an unwritten rule that the murderer is someone who has at least been introduced into the story before he is found to be the murderer?
SPOILER ALERT:
Isn't there an unwritten rule that the murderer is someone who has at least been introduced into the story before he is found to be the murderer?
This is probably the first of 'The Cat Who . . . ' books, as Koko the Siamese cat belongs to an art critic. Jim Qwilleran accepts a job as an art reporter on a small local newspaper, even though he knows nothing about art. He finds an art community split by in-fighting. The paper's art critic is loathed by the artists, but loved by the readers. Jim slowly makes his way through an intricate plot which includes accidents, murders fraud and theft, aided of course by Koko.
This is a light, easy to re...more
This is a light, easy to re...more
Read this on a whim because I'm not much of a mystery reader and I'd always judged these books by their covers and their quantities (I wondered, if there's so many, are they any good?), but I was pleasantly surprised. Reminded me of a lot of mystery cartoon shows.
Keeps one guessing by being intentionally misleading because the story's seen from Qwilleran's personal bias. Liked the art theme, especially since he was so inexperienced in it.
Only disliked that the Halapay storyline was left hangin...more
Keeps one guessing by being intentionally misleading because the story's seen from Qwilleran's personal bias. Liked the art theme, especially since he was so inexperienced in it.
Only disliked that the Halapay storyline was left hangin...more
The first book in a long, light mystery series, The Cat Who Could Read Backwards is extremely dated and has not aged well in my opinion. A book written 50+ years ago could simply feel like a period piece or better reflect the time and place it was written, but this book lacks any sort of plot or character depth and instead relies on shallow over-the-top caricature with an absurdity of situation whose humor doesn't translate well through time. Some examples: one character who is overtly meant to...more
1 like · like · see review
| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Women's Myste...: I love the cat | 13 | 30 | Jun 25, 2012 11:26pm |
Lilian Jackson Braun was an American writer. She is well-known for her light-hearted series of The Cat Who... mystery novels. The Cat Who books center around the life of former newspaper reporter James Qwilleran, and his two Siamese cats, KoKo and Yum Yum in the fictitious small town of Pickax located in Moose County, "400 miles north of everywhere." Although never formally stated in the books, th...more
More about Lilian Jackson Braun...
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“Are those cat hairs on your lapel, or have you been dating a blonde with a crew cut?”
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Jul 06, 2011 04:25pm
Jul 06, 2011 05:25pm