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The Cat and the City

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The Cat and the City

By: Nick Bradley
Narrated by: Bruno Roubicek
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About this listen

'A love letter to Japan and its literature' Rowan Hisayo Buchanan

'Ingenious... Touching, surprising and sometimes heartbreaking' Guardian

'An ideal tonic for anyone craving far-flung adventure' Mail on Sunday

'If you're itching to read a new novel by David Mitchell...try this' The Times

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In Tokyo—one of the world's largest megacities—a stray cat is wending her way through the back alleys. And, with each detour, she brushes up against the seemingly disparate lives of the city-dwellers, connecting them in unexpected ways.

But the city is changing. As it does, it pushes her to the margins where she chances upon a series of apparent strangers—from a homeless man squatting in an abandoned hotel, to a shut-in hermit afraid to leave his house, to a convenience store worker searching for love. The cat orbits Tokyo's denizens, drawing them ever closer.

'Masterfully weaves together seemingly disparate threads to conjure up a vivid tapestry of Tokyo; its glory, its shame, its characters, and a calico cat.' David Peace, author of THE TOKYO TRILOGY

One of the Independent's best debuts

Longlisted for the DUBLIN LITERARY AWARD, 2021

©2020 Nick Bradley (P)2022 W. F. Howes Ltd Animals Fiction Genre Fiction Urban Cats
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This book takes you on a journey through Tokyo, with a series of vignettes taking snapshots of a large cast of characters who seem disparate, but as you read you realise are connected in some way (not least by the cat making it’s way round the city!). The book can be confusing and at turns overwhelming with its insights into city living and Japanese culture, and that perfectly illustrates the crazy, anonymous lives people lead co-existing in a big city. After 18 years in London I really related to some of the characters feelings.
Not every character is likeable, but neither are people in real life , and they serve to enhance the sweetness of the likeable characters, some of whom come back in other stories, connected with a narrative arc which is satisfying.
Sadly the narration let it down for me, I didn’t enjoy his tone, it felt like it was almost “dubbed” like he was translating on the fly, when it is written in English by an English author (albeit a fluent Japanese speaking one), but the stories meant I persevered. I think perhaps the layout of this book (for instance 1 short story is drawn out manga-style) means it would have been more satisfying - and would have leant another layer of cultural reference - in a physical format. Great book though and makes me want to visit Japan!

Interwoven snippets of Tokyo city life

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Unsure about this book. Written (or translated) so it is easily understood even by a child but the content at times was highly sexual and unexpected. Not a great read or listen for me.

Unbalanced text and story

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Linked short stories - learning about a different culture & a green eyed cat - what’s not to love in this book? I will be recommending this book far & wide.

A delight

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Confused throughout but it came together in the end. But overall enjoyed it. So would recommend

Comfusing

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I have been studying and visiting Japan for over 30 years and been lecturing for over 20 years. Because of this, I have read a lot of books about Japan and set in Japan. ‘Cat and the City’ is definitely one of my favourites.

If we don’t think of ‘Japanese’ as a nationality or ethnicity, but rather as a state of mind or a style (so ignore the name the author on the cover of the book), I would say that this is one of the best works of Japanese literature that I have read.

It’s also given me further food for thought as I continue to write my own novels set in Japan.

‘The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon’ was always one of my favourite Japanese books and in recent years I have enjoyed novels by Hideo Yokoyama and increasingly even Haruki Murakami. When I was an undergraduate student I also bought all three volumes of ‘I am a Cat’ – enjoying the first, but, as far as I remember, giving up part way through the second and never touching the third. ‘Cat in the City’ is original, but fits so neatly in a list and discussion with many of these books and authors.

I suspect that those unfamiliar with Japanese literature may struggle with elements – but there are a few well known phrases and things about Japan here and there to help provide hooks – but as more and more Japanese literature is translated into English, I hope that many readers will feel very comfortable with the style. I’m sure that a Japanese translation would do very well in Japan. The book has elements which are amusing, parts which make you pause for thought, a variety of different tales, and it brings them together in a perfect combination linked by a calico cat (I hope “Bob” would appreciate this sentence).

The audiobook is let down by really bad narration. The pronunciation of Japanese words are mostly dreadful, actually changing the meaning of some sentences. I hope one day another version can be done so I can revisit the book.

Returning to what I wrote earlier, do not ignore the name of the author as I have no doubt that he will have many more great books in the future.

A great book being harmed by poor narration

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