review: "dewey's nine lives" plus giveaway!

Dewey Readmore Books began life as a tiny kitten dumped into the book drop at the public library in Spencer, Iowa. He grew up there, befriending people from the town, the state, and then the nation. Eventually Dewey had fans worldwide, thanks to his own sweet self and a little help from his guardian, Spencer Public Library director Vicki Myron. In her new book Dewey's Nine Lives: The Legacy of the Small-Town Library Cat who Inspired Millions (New York: Dutton) Myron continues the story she began in Dewey of the creature whose accepting nature warmed many lives, not least her own. Nine tales tell us not only more about Dewey, but of other cats whose love changed and sustained the hearts of their humans.

You'll learn about Tobi, who gave a quiet local woman in Spencer a sense of belonging; Spooky, a veteran's friend and fellow survivor; and a gray and white tabby of whom her person says, "I have never been loved by anyone. . .the way I have been loved by my Cookie." The tales come full circle with Rusty and Page Turner, who popped up in Myron's and her companion Glenn's lives at just the right times.

Each of the nine stories illuminate different kinds of human pain and difficulty. The love of a cat - or cats, plural - gets everyone through, in ways that mirror the same but unique paths of life we all tread. Vicki Myron has found a way yet again to bring her special friend back and to bring us all together. She calls it "Dewey's Magic," and if that's what to call the feelings of compassion and creature-kindness this book evokes, that's a fine name by me.

And now guess what? You can win this book!
I have a copy for one lucky winner.
We'll do this the usual way: Leave a comment on this post, and Monday November first 2010 (All Souls' Day, kitties included), Elizabeth will bat the lucky winner out of the hat.
Go for it, Museum friends!