The Disabled Tyrant's Beloved Pet Fish Volume 1

Finished April 13

The Disabled Tyrant's Beloved Pet Fish, Volume 1 (Canji Baojun De Zhangxin Yu Chong) written by Xue Shan Fei Hu, translated by Yuka Mimi, illustrated by Ryoplica, Bonus Illustration by Kura, Cover illustration by Changle

This book came to my attention through one of my students, opening my reading world to a new subgenre, danmei, a Chinese romance between male characters. Here, the novel also employs an intriguing format where the narrator, Li Yu is a modern young man who wakes to find himself a fish, a carp, in the world of a book he'd recently read. (The Chinese pronunciation of the name sounds the same as the word for carp.) After a few terrifying adventures, he finds himself himself rescued by Prince Jing. 

Following that he makes two additional discoveries, the first of which is that he appears to be inside some sort of game. He learns this when he hears an announcement in his head that says that he has completed the first part of the 'Moe Pet System' main quest, and that he won't turn back into a human unless he completes the entire quest. The second discovery is that he is inside a recent webnovel that he'd read and he learns that the purpose of his existence here is to improve the tyrannical male lead's personality. 

As he learns how to be a fish, how to connect to his new owner, and how to navigate his way through the Moe Pet System, he also learns that there are side quests that he can take, that he can store things in his inventory, and that he can earn rewards, all of which are part of his expectations of a game system. 

He grows closer to Prince Jing and undergoes many more adventures, some of which change him, and some which give him different abilities. 

There is romance, but no descriptions of sex here, and the story is only the first part of a longer work, so it leaves you at a place where you want more. 

A very interesting and intriguing read that grew on me as I read it. Apparently the majority of readers of this type of book in China are heterosexual women, which is interesting. 

Kym

Finished March 26

Kym by Joyce Stranger

This memoir is about the first cat Joyce owned as an adult, a Siamese cat named Kym. Joyce lived in England and her family was an active one, and after a bad boarding experience, described here, they took Kym on their travels with them. As a child, Joyce was drawn to Siamese cats and had always wanted one of her own. 

Kym has quite the personality, and engages in many adventures, some of which require veterinary care to recover from. The love the family has for him is shown by their actions and they both admire his intrepid streak, and worry about him getting into something beyond his ability to handle. He particularly took to Joyce, travelling on her shoulder and talking to her often. 

As a cat lover, I loved to see the personality of this cat really come through in the memoir, and could picture his adventures and his tales of them in my head easily. A great book for cat lovers. 

The Cat Psychologist

Finished August 13
The Cat Psychologist: Understanding Your Cat by Mardie MacDonald

I read this book, looking to see if it dealt with some of the behaviour exhibited by my cats. The author has had a lot of experience looking after cats, first her own, then other peoples when she ran a cat sitting business. After ceasing that business and taking a break, she announced herself as a cat psychologist, able to help people figure out why their cats were misbehaving, exhibiting signs of unhappiness, and other issues. She makes it clear that she is not training in veterinary science and tries to ensure people have consulted with their vet where appropriate.
Her examples in the book are relatively straightforward for anyone who has owned a few cats and cares about them. She is very much against commercial pet food, preferring to make her own food from basic ingredients.
Some of the behaviours that I have seen in my current cats and previous ones I've had did not appear in the examples that she gives, although I believe they are not uncommon. So I was a bit disappointed on that end of things. It was a quick read, and does provide some useful advice for cat owners. I should note that it is also about thirty years old, so the knowledge of cat behaviour in general and for those specialized in it have grown during that time.

My Puppy Patch

Finished July 29
My Puppy Patch by Theo Heras, illustrated by Alice Carter

This fun picture book as she takes her puppy for her first outing.
The story shows her checking Patch's responses to her commands, things she's already taken time to train her to respond to. The two explore the world outside their yard, and they meet one of the girl's friends, Benny who is also walking his dog, a much larger puppy named Smallfry.
They talk about ways they've looked after their dog, like giving them their shots, and the dogs greet each other and romp around.
When the girl and Patch get home, she cleans her and gives her water and makes sure she has what she needs.
I liked that the story showed good ways to look after a pet, and the bond that develops between the child and the dog.
I loved how the endpapers show the two along with the girl's drawings and lists pertaining to Patch.