The Book, Cat, & Cat Book Lovers Almanac

of historical trivia regarding books, cats, and other animals. Actually this blog has evolved so that it is described better as a blog about cats in history and culture. And we take as a theme the advice of Aldous Huxley: If you want to be a writer, get some cats. Don't forget to see the archived articles linked at the bottom of the page.

November 10, 2013

November 10, 1960

Neil Gaiman may be the future of literature. This English author, born November 10, 1960, is a cat person, and I have to resist writing too many posts on him, but here is another. From Coraline (2002) --

What's your name,' Coraline asked the cat.....
'Cats don't have names,' it said.
'No?' said Coraline.
'No,' said the cat. 'Now you people have names. That's because you don't know who you are. We know who we are, so we don't need names.”


There is one hazard in Gaiman's world he may not be aware of. And that is the conjuratory power of prose cats. Like some metaphysical concepts, or some dashboard lights, the use of 'cat' in a series of somethings functions as a pivot, regardless of whether there is really anything to pivot on.

And here is a Gaiman cat story to read, called, "The Price." It is fun, though I daresay it illustrates my point. Something unearned is involved. Judge for yourself. 

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