Fantastic Cats: A Feast of Famed and Fabled Felines

by Desmond Morris

This is Desmond Morris's first new book on cats since his popular classics Catwatching and Catlore , and he brings to it all his wit and erudition. Every famous cat, both real and imaginary, makes an appearance. There's Trixie, who voluntarily shared the Earl of Southampton's captivity in the Tower of London; Nelson, who performed a vital role during World War II as Churchill's foot-warmer; and stars like Orangey, who played a central role in Breakfast at Tiffany's . There are the felines of magic and make-believe, from Macavity to Graymalkin, even cartoon cats, like Felix and Sylvester. Illustrated throughout with photos, paintings, and engravings, this captivating tome also profiles some of history's most famous cat lovers.

Genres: Cats

224 pages, Hardcover

First published March 1, 2007

About the author

Desmond John Morris (24 January 1928 - 19 April 2026) was an English zoologist, ethologist and surrealist painter, as well as a popular author in human sociobiology.
He is known for his 1967 book The Naked Ape, and for his television programmes such as Zoo Time.

After the death of his wife in 2018 he lived with his son and family in Ireland.[ Morris died in Naas, County Kildare, on 19 April 2026, at the age of 98.

abridged from Wikipedia

Reviews

[Goldenwattle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book. I would have given it a five, except that being Australian I was disappointed our cats were hardly mentioned. The only one I remember was the doubtful honour of having the fattest cat. For example, we have legends of big cats - big black cats roaming the bush along the Great Dividing Range (probably in reality large feral cats) - but these were never mentioned.