I Am a Cat

By: Soseki Natsume, Aiko Ito - translator, Graeme Wilson - translator

Narrated by: David Shih

Written over the course of 1904-1906, Soseki Natsume's comic masterpiece, I Am a Cat, satirizes the foolishness of upper-middle class Japanese society during the Meiji era. With acerbic wit and sardonic perspective, it follows the whimsical adventures of a world-weary stray kitten who comments on the follies and foibles of the people around him.

A classic of Japanese literature, I Am a Cat is one of Soseki's best-known novels. Considered by many as the greatest writer in modern Japanese history, Soseki's I Am a Cat is a classic novel sure to be enjoyed for years to come.

©1972 Aiko Ito and Graeme Wilson (P)2020 Tantor

An intriguing and engaging cats eye view of Japanese society in transition

Had the entire book been like the first 2/3 this would've definitely been a five star highly recommended read, and though I still highly recommend reading it, the last third of the book reduces the cat to be passive transcriber of the words of humans until the final unsettling chapter. Narration is excellent.

Great performance!

Narrator's performance is great. Many different voices for the characters, such that upon hearing a particular voice, you know which character it is, before the text says who is talking. This adds a lot of interest to the book. His pronunciation of Japanese and Chinese words is also better than many narrators.

The book isn't merely random observations of humans in the Meiji era by a cat, but has a story line throughout. Interesting traditional Japan and its customs, with some outdated views, interesting side stories about various happenings, sometimes even funny. The third part gets very philosophical at times but eventually does returns to the main story, which I think is more interesting.

The cat does have a superhuman knowledge of both the East and West, which had been clarified in the foreword, so that wasn't a problem. The foreword introduces the story well and clears away criticisms and questions a reader might have later.

The foreword spoils the ending

I really did enjoy this book and the narrator did an excellent job, but as the header says the foreword of the translator tells you exactly how the story ends and that made it quite hard to enjoy. I'm very firmly in the camp of its not the journey it's the ending so having the whole point of reading a book ruined before it begins put a damper on it. It's a good book, just skip the foreword if you get this.

The narrator was awesome and did such a wonderful performance

The narration was fantastic. The many voices he used were just great and so wonderful

Okay story

Felt long and dragged at some parts. Some parts were quite entertaining. Not too exciting but not too boring. Quite an unexpected and sad ending.