As a reminder, I am reviewing one book each day until Christmas, in no particular order.
Each choice is special in its own way. All would make great gifts for your cat addicted book lovers. Or your book addicted cat lovers. I will focus on books that are quick reads with plenty of photos, because that format makes a great stocking stuffer or add on gift.
Why cat books? Several reasons, really. I adore cats. Cats appear in most of my fiction. And I enjoy promoting cat books for the holidays, because I frequently give or get them as gifts myself. And finally, so many people have a cat, that cat themed gifts are an industry. You can’t go wrong.
“Fat Cat Art: Famous Masterpieces Improved by a Ginger Cat with Attitude” by Svetlana Petrova and Zarathustra the Cat is next on my list.
Fat Cat Art debuted in 2015. This is another “can’t miss” cat book.
The last book looked at cats that paint. I continue today with an art theme. This book features Zarathustra, a fat orange Russian tabby, photoshopped into a plethora of famous paintings. Part of the charm of this book is due to Zarathustra’s cute poses and expressions and part of it is due to Svetlana Petrova’s skill as an artist.
You might think pasting a cat into these artworks is going to look cheesy or fake. But the edited artworks look very real. Petrova photographs Zarathustra against a green screen in a variety of poses. Her editing work is so expert, that the cat blends into the painting perfectly. Petrova gives us an introduction to how she creates the art and the story behind her cat at the beginning.
The book is cleverly organized. It takes the reader on a journey through the history of art, starting with cave paintings, featuring the fat tabby next to a primitive drawing of a portly horse, and finishing with Edward Hopper’s bar in the shadow of a giant orange cat.
There are so many great paintings that are “improved” by adding Zarathustra. The cover art shows Mona Lisa clutching Zarathustra, and now we know why she’s really smiling. Inside, Zarathustra takes the place of the famous cherub strumming the lute. In Portrait of an Unknown Woman in Russian Costume, the woman with the glorious tapestry hat holds Zarathustra with his neck in an identically embroidered vet collar. There’s a whimsical humor in these pages. I could go on, but you’re going to want to see the images for yourself.
Each piece of art is accompanied by musings on why a cat improves the art. It’s an entertaining counterpoint. After reading all 300 pages, I concur. Fat Cats improve art. Te Huffington Post concurs: “It’s official. That thing that classic art has been missing is a chubby reclining kitty.”
One reason I particularly enjoy Zarathustra is that I also have a chubby orange tabby. My Caesar looks strikingly like Zarathustra in many of these images. But even if you don’t have an orange tabby, you’ll love paging through this book again and again. I got it when it first came out and revisit it often. It’s a keeper.
