There are plenty of guys out there who live with cats. And plenty of guys who wonder, from time to time, what it is their cats are thinking. Well, wonder no more!Francesco Marciuliano, creator of the popular comic strip Sally Forth, has come up with I Could Pee on This: and Other Poems by Cats. As he says in the Introduction, "now, through the power of poetry and a publishing contract, cats everywhere can fully welcome people into their hearts, minds, and souls."
Take, for example, the poem "I Lick Your Nose", found in the first section of the book, containing poems about "Family":
I Lick Your Nose
by Francesco Marciuliani
I lick your nose
I lick your nose again
I drag my claws down your eyelids
Oh, you're up? Feed me
The second section, entitled "Work", addresses the types of work that cats do, including their desire to be treated with the appropriate respect and their attitudes toward your work . . . for them:
Kneel Before MeThe third section is entitled "Play", including poems about playing, cat toys, and, of course, cat nip:
by Francesco Marciuliani
In ancient Egypt
We cats were gods
We ruled the heavens
We reigned on earth
So kneel before me
I said come to me
Uh, listen to me
How about just a treat then?
Okay, maybe a toy
Some crumpled paper would do
I'm not picky
Well, can you at least scratch behind my ear?
Can you at least do that?
Oh
Oh yes
You serve your master well
Kubla KatPretty terrific riff on Samuel Taylor Coleridge's opium-induced Kubla Khan, right? I figured I'd include it not just for its whimsy, but to demonstrate that not all the poems in the book are in free verse.
by Francesco Marciuliani
On the edge of a laughing teacup
Did Kubla Kat decree
That the corn fritter festooned with medals
Shall make the brownies free
And so the walls turned to water
To let our sorrows drown
As the chairs burned themselves for warmth
So they need not face the clown
Then the spoons burst into song
And all the forks they understood
As I stared at my now talking claws
Because this catnip is just that good
The final section, "Existence", is by far the most philosophical. With many fine specimens to choose from, I've opted to go with one of my favorites - "Nature's Way".
Nature's Way
by Francesco Marciuliani
The leaf twirls gently
to the dry ground
The flake tumbles lightly
to the snowy mound
The lightning falls mightily
to the earth with a crash
And I plummet sleepily
from the fridge to the trash.
Such is nature's way
8 comments :
I saw this one and loved the cover. May have to purchase-- very amusing!
If you are at all a cat person, it will keep you in stitches.
These are hilarious. My mom just bought me a copy for Christmas.
i just KNEW i should have led with this back on december 12th when i threw it in at the end of my holiday omnibus.
one of the bestsellers in campus bookstores nationwide...
The niecelet saw this and decided she wants the book...!
David: I could not find a hard copy anywhere in the area and had to write the review from a copy purchased for my sweetheart's Nook! There are, like, two copies that might be within a hundred mile radius, or something to that effect.
There were just so very many poems to love, Tanita, that your niecelet will be quite enthralled. And Sarah - I saw your post about it on FB, which is why I decided to check it out in the first place!
Cover & title: Priceless. Marketing genius.
J.R. - I hear you. Don't you wish you'd thought of it? I know I do!
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