Jennie Unknown Binding – January 1, 2011

amazingly beautiful. make us think about the original Covenants from ancient times: the Lost Covenants between huMans and our fellow creatures. Ohyes: example: Cow gives us milk / husband Mr Bull plows our fields / and we huMans protect the cows from their predators. Makes sense? sure! - but we "huMans" ( = the descendants of Ancient Manu, our great great grandfather who spread us) are breaking The Natural Spiritual Covenant - feeding cows indigestible maize, torturing and savagely needlessly killing them. Now, boys and girls and other huManoids: we have a Lost Covenant with Cats: they catch our deadly rats, and we feed give them protection - and Furthermore: we teach each other deeper lessons about Love.)Grab this. Readable out loud. For children from 2 to one hundred years old. In the USA this masterpiece was called The Abandoned. I got one of each: each cover Alone will hopefully open forgotten dry channels of the heart. and of Memory.Treating other creatures badly will unerringly bring us bad karma / whether we remember our offenses or not.Ps. you Will be attached to Knowledge. In which case: there Is a sort-a next story: Thomasina. the Masterpiece movie with PATRICK McGOOHAN is - guess? - not as good as the Gallico novel: "The Three Lives of Thomasina - the cat who thought she's a goddess". (my fine-tuning 😊)

While looking for meaningful books to give my 10-year-old daughter (grade 5), found this author and this book: Jennie. Based on the reviews, bought it. When we received it, I skimmed it and thought my daughter may enjoy it, as its main characters are cats. My daughter loves anything cats and dogs. She devoured this book, had to take breathers at every couple chapters. It was an emotional, and she said “realistic” read. My daughter is already quite empathic and sentimental So, wasnt sure if I had made the right choice... When she finished it, she sobbed and hugged me and asked a lot of questions. Despite that, she said it was an amazing book and would highly recommend it.

'Tell me a story', asked an 8 year-old boy the other day who was recuperating from a mild case of chicken pox. 'How about the story of a boy called Peter and a cat that he met?' I replied. From the young invalid: 'I really prefer dogs but is the story a true one?'. 'I believe it is, and it happened many years ago before you were born'. 'Alright', replied the ailing child, 'but I will let you know if I find it boring'. And so I began:'Peter was your age and living in London with his parents and nanny after a big war; WWII actually, and most of the big cities in Europe were damaged after the fighting was over. He lived in a small house in a neighborhood with a park and every day he would go out with his nanny. His father was busy with his work in the army, and his mother whom he loved very much, was beautiful and used to go out to parties in lovely evening dresses so she didn't have much time for him. Peter had friends his age, but he spent a lot of time with his Scottish nanny who was strict and he was lonely. Oh, and he loved cats! He knew all the cats in the neighborhood and he wanted one of his own. Sometimes Peter would find a lost one and hide it in the house for a day or two, but his nanny always found it and threw it out in the street because she was allergic and didn't like them'.'One day when Peter was out walking with his nanny, he saw a lovely striped tabby across the street sitting in the sun, and he ran into the road and had an accident. Peter couldn't remember what happened when he opened his eyes again, except that he had heard his nanny scream and now his shoulder hurt him very badly. And that was when he found out that he had turned into a cat. Well he didn't know if he was dreaming, where he was and he was frightened so he started to run and run through the streets of the city and it was all very scary. He could still read signs and he remembered his address, but he didn't know how to get help and the streets were full of people who kept walking, and one or two gave him a kick and his ears hurt because of all the busy traffic and city noise. But Peter had no place to take shelter or rest, so he kept on going and was terribly hungry and drenched in the rain until he finally collapsed in exhaustion after running into a big bully of a cat who told him to get lost.''The story might have ended there for Peter except that when he woke up, he found that he was alive and had been saved by a small feral plain cat with large luminous eyes that glowed in the dark. Her name was Jennie Baldrin and she taught Peter all about cats and how to become one.Now Peter after listening carefully to Jennie's own life, understood how she felt and tries to restore her faith in human beings whom she distrusts. This is when the story really begins and the two of them set off together on a big adventure. They even go on a ship and earn their keep, and at times their adventures are a lot of fun and might make you laugh. It's all about a great friendship and how Peter swears to Jennie that nothing will ever separate them, or come between them. No matter whatever happens, they will always be together (here I took a pause). 'What's the matter? Your voice sounds a bit funny and your eyes are sad', interrogated my young listener who was now propped up against his pillow. 'It's nothing', I told him, 'just a bit of a cold and I will put on my sweater...'Paul Gallico, the late author of "Jennie" was born in New York City, and has been somewhat forgotten today. Readers often think that he is British judging from his writing style. A sports editor, a columnist and an assistant managing editor for the New York Daily News, he settled down in Devon for a year in 1936 with a Great Dane and twenty-three assorted cats. Famous for his classic novel "The Snow Goose", a small story of Dunkirk (1941) which became a world-wide bestseller, Gallico's "Jennie" came out in 1950, and addresses the case of stray cats and their behavior in a fascinating way, with a multitude of tips for cat lovers and how to better understand them.While written as a children's book and much enjoyed by youngsters at the time, it is also a story for grown-ups with a dark edge to it. Jennie's world, as seen through the eyes of young Peter, is real in the matters of love and courage, friendship, perseverance and endurance. The loss that leaves Jennie bereft at the end of this short novel, reminded me curiously of the realism of Theodore Dreiser's 'Jennie Gerdhardt' and is haunting, for Peter in Jennie's World and in his Dream, hears both her voice and his mother's calling him to come back.This one for you, Jen, and your set of whiskers Miss Cleo, after we found each other again after forty-seven years this past winter when it was snowing in British Canada. 'Mice and Mumps', and many happy returns to you!

This story of Paul Gallico portrays a boy who metamorphasized into a cat, who must then be aided by a cat named Jennie in all the ins and outs of being a cat. Their adventures are interesting, never dull. (This was written in 1950, and the eponymous character 1957 Thomasina refers to Jennie was being a relative -- both cats refer to how cats were worshipped as gods in Egypt. It would be nice if Gallico had written a third book about cats!)

My wife and I used to have a copy of this book, but it was borrowed, and we eventually had to return it. We had been looking for it (from time to time) and this time I was lucky enough to find it.Honestly you should read the other 5-star reviews of this novel, because I cannot wax nearly so eloquently over it as they have already done.DEFINITELY RECOMMENDED FOR ANYONE BETWEEN THE AGES OF 3 and 100+

I was sent scurrying to a re-read of this following a chance post by a fellow blogger about fictional books with a cat-focus. Particularly as another post by a different blogger, about a book by Beverley Nichols had sent me to my bookshelves in remembrance of a book from childhood by Nichols, about his cats.  Beverley Nichols' Cats' A. B. C. I first read Paul Gallico’s delightful (and sobbingly heart-aching) book about a little boy who finds himself changed into a cat, when I was probably at target age 8-11, I think. And I have occasionally read it again, and it’s similarly cats-eye view orientated successor, Thomasina.Although the protagonist is a little boy, this is by no means childishly written, nor does it just offer whimsicality about cats. I’m afraid, despite of course knowing the story well, that I sobbed in all the places I had ever sobbed before – perhaps partly because of memories of the first sobbing, aged somewhere around 9 or 10, but also, because some quite deep themes are being explored – particularly loss, friendship, betrayal of trust, death.“Hers was the call of the loneliness of the rejected, the outcast of the granite heart of the unheeding city”Peter Brown is a lonely rather privileged little boy – he has a Nanny and two successful, socialite parents who are too busy to give him much love and affection. Above everything, he wants a cat, but as Nanny doesn’t like them and his parents are too occupied with their own concerns to risk upsetting Nanny, Peter’s dearest wish is denied. Seeing a little kitten across a busy main road, Peter follows his tender instincts and runs, without doing his Green Cross, across the road. And is knocked down. Unexpectedly he finds he has become a white cat (I know, I know, but stick with it, this is far from merely twee fantasy)Gallico, a life long animal, and particularly cat-animal lover, absolutely takes the reader inside cat-dom. Peter retains human consciousness, and has no idea how to circumnavigate his new world. Starving, chased away, stepped on by unaware people because he lacks the cat sense to get out of the way, Peter is almost killed by a ferocious territorial feral top cat. Fortunately, he gets rescued by the eponymous Jennie, a sweet-faced, sweet-natured, intelligent and rather plain fellow stray cat. Jennie is a cat who now hates people, following her abandonment by the loving family who were everything to her. She begins to teach the little boy trapped inside a cat’s body how to be a cat. And the reader too! Peter must learn the intricacies of being able to wash himself, the difference between the game of catching your breakfast mouse and killing a deadly rat, cat courtesy, the rules of cat conflict, how to open dustbins – and much more.Although Peter comes to think as cat, he also retains his little boy ability to understand human language, and, rather importantly, to read. He has many exciting adventures with Jennie – including travelling, as the two stowaway and work passage on a Glasgow steamer. They have several instances of narrow escapes from various dangers which might befall a cat, and, as in all good books, grow, develop and change through their relationship with each other and external events.Peter and Jennie learn from each other and teach each other how to be more – soulful, whatever the shape of the body that encloses them.Gallico leavens sadness with much fun and good humour, and all his characters, feline and human are quirky, recognisable and sharply delineatedThis is a gorgeous book for a tender-hearted child, and a tender-hearted adult too. And with even more appeal if some of your tenderness is cat shapedHappily now re-issued as a Modern Classic, it was originally published in 1950 Beverley Nichols' Cats' A. B. C.

Bought as a gift for me really, as I wanted to re-read the story I loved as a child, but in fact it's for my 9 year old. I'm reading it to her because I don't think a Year 5 would cope with the language and writing style. Paul Gallico writes in long, eloquent sentences (a single sentence can last a hefty paragraph) and uses words that would be beyond her understanding. But it's gorgeously descriptive. Clearly he's studied cats because the way he describes every movement and thought seems perfect. I love this story, as does she. Please read this. You don't have to be a cat-lover to enjoy it but it helps.

Jennie is a cat , and her best friend, Peter, is a white tom cat. But Peter has a secret, he is really a human boy who forgot his road drill and after being hit by a coal lorry wakes up in the animal underground of London, as a cat. Jennie shows Peter the ways of cats and they set out on a number of colourful adventures together . Gradually , they fall in love and Peter feels very protective toward Jennie, who has suffered at human hands. Sadly events work toward a climax which neither of them can avoid, and it really is a heartbreaking conclusion. Paul Galico at his best..A must for all cat lovers .

I first read this book 50 years ago (yes, 50) when I was very young. My elder sister kindly loaned it to me, and I can't adequately describe what a deep impression it made on my young mind. I recall I wanted to find Jennie, take her home and look after her.Well, the book soon went out of print, I couldn't find a copy anywhere, and the years rolled by. But I never forgot it, and then it turned up on Amazon (of course, where else) in e-book format. I'd forgotten much of it, and misremembered much of the rest, but it didn't matter. What a pleasure it was to read it again after all these years.If you're a cat fancier you'll certainly enjoy reading this. If you're not, well, you may find you never see cats in quite the same way again. Paul Gallico anthropomorphises them of course, but there's much in Peter and Jennie that you'll find in real cats.Highly recommended.(Deep in my imagination, Jennie is still out there somewhere.........)

A really good story from the beginning until thw end. The story of a boy called Peter. Animal cruelity to begin or so nearly left for dead. Jennie is his guardian angel who looks after him and shows him how to take care of himself. Peter encounters relationships of other cats and finds out their behaviour, independence they seek. He tells Jennie that he isn't a cat but he is clearly known to her. Dempsy is the Top Cat of the territory who likes to know and control the behaviours of others. Meeting various journeys and encounters along the way, Jennie and with her pal Peter face the ups and downs of survival and being stray. Although Peter wakes up to find his mother,father and other family members besized him.