Reviews

I Am a Cat by Natsume Sōseki

sophia_a_a's review

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4.0

overall, i really enjoyed this book. i liked seeing the interactions and connections of human beings and their nature in a different perspective, that of a cat. i think the relationships between the main character, mr sneaze, and his friends was a very humble and calming kind of thing. they could get together whenever and talk about anything that comes up, it was a tranquil kind of book. there wasnt any major events, just the little series of lifes misfortunes and sufferings, such as the students bothering mr sneaze. this book is definitely a comfort read of mine, the only thing i wasnt too fond of was the ending. it seemed abrupt and not planned out well, but perhaps thats the best part, as life is unexpected and abrupt.

delaguila19's review against another edition

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4.0

Muy interesante la forma de Sōseki para narrar desde la perspectiva del gato, sin nombre y sin mas interes que ir contado lo que pasa con su amo, el profesor, y los diferentes personajes que lo rodean. El gato usa al profesor para tratar de comprender la naturaleza humana atraves de sus anecdotas y sus experiencias, usa tambien a su circulo intimo para describir que es lo que los motiva a hacer o dejar de hacer determinadas acciones, asi tiene a Meitei como el amigo inoportuno del profesor para describir la personalidad narcisa y extrovertida, tambien esta la esposa del profesor para dar la cuota de sentido comun, y a varios mas que atraves del analisis del felino van siendo identificados como elementos
que pueden encontrarse en gran parte de la sociedad y no solo la japonesa sino tambien las occidentales.

imissyou's review against another edition

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3.0

Look, this is a great book with great quotes but its not the book for me personally. I honestly don't know how I feel about it, it was slow and I skipped like 100 pages at least but I still liked it, anyways, yeah good book but not that good, read it anyways if you have a cat.

heatherrobs's review

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adventurous funny lighthearted relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

cirrusmammatus's review

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adventurous reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

viuuuuuuuuuu1's review against another edition

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slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

breathless's review

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I've loved other Natsume Soseki works but this one is too boring. First couple chapters are ok, the rest is just meh.

mions's review

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funny lighthearted reflective slow-paced

3.0

This book is referenced in plenty of media, so I am glad I have now read it and can understand those better!

What’d I think of the book itself though? Ehh... I don’t think the writing style used here is really for me. I found myself losing focus rather often.
I don’t think it’s a problem with Natsume as an author. I have been reading Bocchan at the same time I was reading I Am a Cat, never facing the same problems with it. It’s likely mainly the fact that I expected this story to be more from the cat’s perspective, but at times… well, I would say rather often, its voice gets completely drowned out by the discussions of the human characters at times. There were a few moments where I felt for the cat or was amused by its commentary, but I wish there were more of those moments.

Wish there was more of the actual cat, less details about the ponderings of the humans around. But with the cultural relevance, a worthwhile reading experience nonetheless

andymccormick's review

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dark funny informative lighthearted medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.75

grayjay's review

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4.0

I can't decide if I really liked this book, or if I just really wanted to really like this book. It has several things I really like ostensibly--talking cats, dry sardonic satire, Japan--but I definitely had to drag myself through some of the duller parts.