I Am a Cat

I am nearly finished with this Soseki book, and I though I might write a review of it.First of all, one ought to recognize that the book was written over a hundred years ago in 1905-6 in Japan. It was originally published (much like some of Charles Dickens' work) in installments in a magazine. Soseki is still to this day widely read by youth in Japanese schools and I would consider him to be one of many important influences in the formation of the modern Japanese Zeitgeist. That's the real reason I, personally, picked up this book. I wanted some insight into the frames of reference, history, and culture of Japan. I have not been disappointed. Soseki is exceedingly generous in discussing and joking about all the various ways in which Western academic ideas and cultural notions are having their confluence - flowing into - Japanese culture during the Meiji Restoration period. Soseki was obviously an incredibly well-read and astute scholar, when it comes to both Oriental and Occidental academic thought, philosophy, and history. In this book, there are numerous references to the names and works of various famous scholars throughout history, and it is well worth the curious reader's while to do a quick Google or Wikipedia search on these names, because it will flesh out the picture of what Soseki is trying to philosophize about.From a plot/story perspective, I think many English readers will be surprised with how differently Soseki (and many other contemporary and historical Japanese authors) construct their novels. Some weeks ago, I read another and much shorter book by Soseki - "Botchan" - and in both books, he seems to use the plot device of a form of relentless negativity in order to allow him to show the reader clearly and without bias what he thinks about a range of issues, or about a personality archetype (in the case of Botchan). This is a very unusual plot device which I have never encountered in a novel written by a Westerner. The main character in "I am a Cat" is, not suprisingly, a cat. This cat is used as a first person tool to give the reader something of a "fly on the wall" perspective into the friendships and drama that take place at the turn of that century in his master's (a school teacher's) household. Perhaps housecats were generally not treated as well in 1906 as they are today in modern countries. Because of constant ill-treatment, the cat is resentful and scathingly critical of all things human.On another level, however, I can see that if I were to climb into the mindset of mainstream 1906 Japanese society, I might find the whole book to be nothing but a barrelful of laughs. This is because nearly every sentence in the book seems to consist of some sarcastic remark about the society of the day. Soseki is a true master of the art of humor in this way. Sarcasm, of course, often doesn't translate well to people with sensibilities which have been molded by growing up in another time or place. Prepare for your mind to be stretched!From a readability perspective, the buyer of this book ought to be forewarned that it was translated after WWII by the British academic Graeme Wilson. Therefore, the book is written in British English rather than American English. I have found that two or three times on each page I have needed to look up an obscure British word (many of them informal or slang) in an online dictionary. Sometimes the peculiar spellings in the book cannot be found in current dictionary editions.I also have noted with Soseki and other Japanese authors that they seem to allow themselves a certain amount of slop and a few inconsistencies when it comes to the plot if it is particularly important for them to be able to give whatever unique gift they want to give to the reader in a certain paragraph of text. Japanese bookworms seem to forgive this sort of thing much more than Western readers might.Finally, I'll just note that Soseki is fastidious in realistically depicting the behavior of cats. This is something I suppose doesn't change from nation to nation, or century to century. It is really beautiful and quaint how he dreams up some kind of internal dialog in the cat's mind to justify playful and recognizable behavior just at the moment when the cat supposedly has his mind occupied with all sorts of anthropological notions about humanity.

I Am a Cat” is one of those rare books that blends humor, social critique, and sheer charm in a way that only Japanese literature can. Written by Natsume Sōseki, this novel gives us a cat’s-eye view of society through the sharp observations of a curious and thoroughly sardonic feline narrator. The cat’s perspective is both hilariously aloof and refreshingly honest as it explores the quirks of its human companions and the absurdities of human society.The writing is beautifully crafted, with wit that feels timeless, even though it was written over a century ago. The translation does a great job preserving Sōseki’s humor and subtle social commentary. For fans of classic literature, Japanese culture, or anyone who just loves a good, clever read, this book is a must-have. It’s a delightful, thoughtful journey, proving that a cat may indeed know best about the peculiarities of human nature. Highly recommend for a cozy, insightful read!

First some technical stuff: I read "I Am a Cat" on the kindle which allowed me to forget it's over 600 pages. The kindle always weighs the same and you can make the text big. I found there were a lot of typos in the beginning. Sometimes I would want to look up the definition of a word but since it was misspelled I was unable to just click on it. Eventually I got so swept up in the book that I stopped noticing."I Am a Cat" is not a plot-driven page turner. But if you enjoy sinking your teeth into each sentence and lingering, then this book is for you. There are so many wonderfully crafted, witty and wise sentences in here, I mean, pretty much the entire thing. This is a rich book.Told from the perspective of a cat who acts as voyeur and anthropologist, "I Am a Cat" follows the cat's master, a school teacher named Mr. Sneaze, and his pretentious, academic visitors in Meiji Era Japan. I had no previous interest in Japanese literature, I just picked this book up out of the blue but I enjoyed learning about the specific social norms and prejudices of Japan in this time period which the book pokes fun at with much wit.The device of the cat telling the story makes for some good jokes and philosophizing about animals' place in human society but a lot of the book is really not about the cat at all. We follow Mr. Sneaze through his mundane daily routines and his interactions with his friends. The dialog is wonderful, with one or two poet characters bursting into Haiku now and then. It made me think a little of Seinfeld in that the characters never learn a lesson- they just keep bantering and getting into their inevitable little mishaps.By the end of the book, not a lot has happened but I had become very attached to the characters and "listening" to them talk. As I read the final two pages of the book I was bawling. I'm not sure if this was because those passages were so, so beautiful, and a different vibe from the rest of the book, or because I didn't want it to end. Probably a bit of both.