Homer's Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned about Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat Review
A great read. Gwen Cooper is a wonderful writer, I found her passion and emotion drawing me in as a participant in the story. I invisioned myself running frantically through the streets of New York City after 9/11, as she did in a quest to get back to her 3 beloved cats. And of course the story itself is one of great love and triumph. Such a little, blind cat; such a big loving heart.
The story of Homer should serve as an inspiration to all who have ever questioned the meaning of life. Life for this little cat is one big leap of faith.
I couldn't put this book down. I hated reaching the last page, I wanted more. I could go on and on, but I think that anyone who has ever felt a bond with a pet will love this book. And for those of you who just need a good fun book to read this is the one. It's full of laughs a few tears and a whole lot of action.
Homer's Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned about Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat Overview
ONCE IN NINE LIVES, SOMETHING EXTRAORDINARY HAPPENS.
The last thing Gwen Cooper wanted was another cat. She already had two, not to mention a phenomenally underpaying job and a recently broken heart. Then Gwen’s veterinarian called with a story about a three-week-old eyeless kitten who’d been abandoned. It was love at first sight.
Everyone warned that Homer would always be an “underachiever.” But the kitten nobody believed in quickly grew into a three-pound dynamo with a giant heart who eagerly made friends with every human who crossed his path. Homer scaled seven-foot bookcases with ease, survived being trapped alone for days after 9/11 in an apartment near the World Trade Center, and even saved Gwen’s life when he chased off an intruder who broke into their home in the middle of the night. But it was Homer’s unswerving loyalty, his infinite capacity for love, and his joy in the face of all obstacles that transformed Gwen’s life. And by the time she met the man she would marry, she realized that Homer had taught her the most valuable lesson of all: Love isn’t something you see with your eyes.
Homer's Odyssey: A Fearless Feline Tale, or How I Learned about Love and Life with a Blind Wonder Cat Specifications
Book Description
Once in nine lives, something extraordinary happens...
The last thing Gwen Cooper wanted was another cat. She already had two, not to mention a phenomenally underpaying job and a recently broken heart. Then Gwen’s veterinarian called with a story about a three-week-old eyeless kitten who’d been abandoned. It was love at first sight.
Everyone warned that Homer would always be an "underachiever," never as playful or independent as other cats. But the kitten nobody believed in quickly grew into a three-pound dynamo, a tiny daredevil with a giant heart who eagerly made friends with every human who crossed his path. Homer scaled seven-foot bookcases with ease and leapt five feet into the air to catch flies in mid-buzz. He survived being trapped alone for days after 9/11 in an apartment near the World Trade Center, and even saved Gwen’s life when he chased off an intruder who broke into their home in the middle of the night.
But it was Homer’s unswerving loyalty, his infinite capacity for love, and his joy in the face of all obstacles that inspired Gwen daily and transformed her life. And by the time she met the man she would marry, she realized Homer had taught her the most important lesson of all: Love isn’t something you see with your eyes.
Homer’s Odyssey is the once-in-a-lifetime story of an extraordinary cat and his human companion. It celebrates the refusal to accept limits—on love, ability, or hope against overwhelming odds. By turns jubilant and moving, it’s a memoir for anybody who’s ever fallen completely and helplessly in love with a pet.
Amazon Exclusive: Gwen Cooper on Homer's Odyssey
I never wanted to be a writer of non-fiction. While I can honestly say that I dreamt of being a writer from my earliest discovery of books, memoirs held no interest for me. The stories I loved—and devoured with a single-minded intensity that charmed my English teachers while causing my math teachers to gnash their teeth in frustration—were stories that were larger than life, that played out on a grand scale. I read fairy tales, mythology (Greek, Roman, Egyptian, Norse, Native American, you name it), epic poems, novels about soldiers, pirates, adventurers, explorers, heroes, magicians, revolutionaries, beautiful damsels, dashing cads, romances, tragedies, comedies—everything, in short, that struck me as just a touch more interesting than real life ever seemed to be.It amazes me now that, for years, I never thought about Homer as being the hero of his own story. I knew that he was extraordinary, I knew that everybody who ever met him was full of questions—wanting to know why and how. But he was also just my cat, the goofy little guy who jumped around in circles when I came home at night, who loved to chase around stuffed toys, insisted on getting his fair share of tuna if I was making a tuna sandwich, and curled up in a tight ball on my left knee whenever I sat at the computer to email friends or finish up work projects.
The idea of writing about Homer didn’t occur to me until Laurence, my husband—who was then my boyfriend—met him for the first time and wanted to know (as most people do) how it was that Homer ended up blind. When I told him how Homer had been abandoned shortly after birth, how he’d been near death until he was brought in to my veterinarian, how the price of saving his life had been the loss of his vision, and how he’d still nearly met an inglorious end in an animal shelter because nobody wanted to adopt him until finally my vet called me—when he heard all that, Laurence’s response was, "He’s like Daredevil, like a comic book superhero. He has an origin story and everything."
Laurence was quite pleased with this analogy, and loved to expound upon it. When he observed that Homer was braver, faster, and more agile than my two sighted cats, or when he saw Homer leap five feet straight into the air to catch a buzzing fly in mid-flight, he would talk about Homer’s "superpowers." When I told him how Homer had once single-handedly chased off a burglar who broke into my apartment in the middle of the night, Laurence said, “You’re a storyteller—why don’t you tell some of these stories?”
It’s impossible to quantify or define the ways in which Homer has moved me, inspired me, and flat-out entertained me over the years. But perhaps the greatest gift he’s given me is the ability to find the heroism and grandeur of my favorite stories smack-dab in the middle of my everyday life. Don’t get me wrong—there’s plenty of action and larger-than-life adventure tales to be found in these pages. But Homer is extraordinary even when he’s at his most ordinary. No aspiring writer in love with adventure stories could have asked for better material.
I always wanted to be a writer, but I never wanted to be a writer of non-fiction. Sometimes, things work out differently than you think they will. Sometimes life picks you up and drops you in the middle of a story that’s better than any you could ever have imagined. Sometimes you don’t know what’s missing until you find it. Homer is the living proof.—Gwen Cooper
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Customer Reviews
Great story of overcoming odds - BC -
This is a great book for animal lovers. As a guy who many consider a "manly man" I would recommend this book simply for the reason it is easy to read and the author really gives you a sense of Homer's absolute optimism and zest for life. We can all use a lift and Homer's Odyssey is just that. The only reason I did not give 5 stars was toward the end of the book the author lost track of the cats and hit a bit too much on finding herself a mate. Other than that the book is superb.
Homer's Odyssey - Diana C. Barker - Beavercreek, OH
If you are an animal lover, then this is the book for you! The author does a wonderful job of writing her true story about her cat that she adopted. I found myself not only falling madly in love with Homer, the cat, but the author herself and could not wait to read on and capture every word in each chapter. I was sad when I finished the book, but know that I will reread the book again and enjoy each time that I do.
Homer's Odyssey - FishingBear -
I listened to the audiobook version of Homer's Odyssey and was deeply moved by the courage and love that Gwen and Homer have and share. This book is easy and lovely to read! I highly recommend it!
Heart warming story for all cat lovers - Debbie SR - Alabama
I would've given 10 stars if I could! Gwen told her story with the cats (Homer, Scarlett and Vashti) with such passion. I can totally relate to her story as I have been adopted by 4 semi-feral cats who appeared from somewhere in the woods in my backyard. Apparently the mother cat was somebody's pet before she was "let go". At any rate, Homer's story is very touching and heart warming. A must read for all cat lovers.
*** Product Information and Prices Stored: Nov 07, 2010 03:00:09
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