Shirley Murphy - Christmas Cats - A Literary Companion

Cleveland Amorywrote many highly successful books about animals, including The Cat Who Came for Christmas, The Cat and the Curmudgeon , and The Best Cat Ever , as well as such widely praised works of social history as The Proper Bostonians, The Last Resorts , and Who Killed Society 1 ? He founded the Fund for Animals in 1967.

Rita Mae Brownis the best-selling author oi Ruby fruit Jungle, In Her Day, Six of One, Southern Discomfort, Sudden Death, High Hearts, Bingo, Starting from Scratch, Venus Envy, Dolley, Riding Shotgun , and Rita Will . An Emmy-nominated screenwriter and a poet, she lives in Afton, Virginia.

Sneaky Pie Brown,a tiger cat born somewhere in Albemarle County, Virginia, was discovered by Rita Mae Brown at her local SPCA.

Renie Burgkardtis a freelance writer with credits in books such as Chicken Soup for the Horse Lover's Soul, Chicken Soup for the Christian Family Soul, Chocolate for Women , and others. She lives in the country with four cats and four dogs.

Wendy Christensen,cultural ailurologist, cat-herder, writer, and painter, shares her rural New Hampshire home with her husband, more than ten thousand books, and the nine magnificent felines who are her models, muses, constant companions, and dearest friends. Her latest book is Outwitting Cats: Tips, Tricks, and Techniques for Persuading the Felines in Your Life That What YOU Want

Is Also What THEYWant (Lyons Press, 2004).

Christine Church'sfirst book, Housecat: How to Keep Your Indoor Cat Sane and Sound was first published in 1998 by Howell Book House. In 1999> this book became a bestseller in Great Britain. In 2OOI, TFH Publications published Christine's book Indoor Cats , which won the lams Responsible Pet Ownership Award for that year. Christine's next book, also by TFH Publications, was Your Outta Control Cat , and her latest, which was released in February 3005, is the revised edition of her first book, House Cat . Chris also writes fantasy fiction.

Steve Dalewrites the syndicated newspaper column "My Pet World" (Tribune Media Services) and he's a contributing editor at USA Weekend . He's the host of syndicated Steve Dale's Pet World (www.petworldradio.net) and Pet Minute with Steve Dale , as well as Pet Central on WGN Radio Chicago (www.wgnradio.com). Steve is the editor in chief of PawPrints , a newsletter distributed to veterinarians around the world (in conjunction with Merial and the AVMA). He has set up the Ricky Fund at the Winn Feline Foundation to further research in feline medicine. To learn more, contact www.winnfelinehealth.org or call (73^) 528-9797-

Carole Nelson Douglasis the award-winning author of the Midnight Louie series, including Cat in a Flamingo Fedora, Cat with an Emerald Eye, Cat in a Diamond Dazzle , and Cat in a Crimson Haze . She lives in Fort Worth, Texas.

Jim Edgarlives in Seattle, where he runs the Web site www.mycathatesyou.com and muses the plight of the modern-day feline. He has also written the humor book Bad Cat .

Miriam Fields-Bahineauis a designer of dog training products and the author of two novels, twenty-eight books about dogs and dog training, and one book on cat training. She resides in Virginia with her husband, son, two dogs, four cats, and horse.

James Herriotwas born in Scotland and practiced veterinary medicine in Yorkshire, England, for half a century until he died in 1995- ^ e^ sthe author of Every Living Thing, James Herriot's Cat Stories , and James Herriot's Dog Stories .

Laurie Loughlinworks in the medical field in Nashville, Tennessee, and parodies songs in her spare time. She has two cats, Greta and Penelope.

Willie Morriswas the author of My Cat Spit McGee, My Dog Skip, North Toward Home, New York Days , and many other books.

Shirley Rousseau Murphyis the creator of the feline sleuth Joe Grey, P.I. in the mystery series beginning with Cat on the Edge , set in a small village on the California coast; of the cat fantasy The CatswoldPortal , set in a world beneath San Francisco; and of earlier fantasies for children and young adults. She has been a painter and sculptor, a commercial artist and interior designer. She and her husband live in California with two lady cats, both rescued strays who enjoy all the amenities of a pampered life. Her Web site is www.joegrey.com.

Amy D. Shojaiis an animal behavior consultant, award-winning author, lecturer, and a nationally known authority on pet care and behavior. She is a passionate proponent of owner education in her books, articles, columns, and media appearances, and can be reached through www.shojai.com. Her most recent books include PETiquette: Solving Behavior Problems in Your Multi-pet Household and Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul .

Clea Simonis the author of several books, including The Feline Mystique and the Theda Krakow mystery Mew Is for Murder . She can be reached through her Web site, www.CleaSimon.com.

Betsy Stoweis the author of Calico Tales and Others (Infinity), which has won five international awards, including the 2OO4 World's Best Cat Litter™-ary Award and a Muse Medallion™ from the Cat Writers' Association. The book is a loving collection of more than fifty of her cat poems and photographs.

Credits and Permissions

"Holiday Sparkles, or Home for the Holidays" by Amy D. Shojai. Copyright © 2OO5 by Amy D. Shojai.

"Along Comes Spit McGee" from My Cat Spit McGee by Willie Morris, copyright © 1999 by Willie Morris. Used by permission of Random House, Inc.

"Vincent" by Jim Edgar. Copyright © 2OO5 by Jim Edgar.

"The Rescue" from The Cat Who Came for Christmas by Cleveland Amory. Copyright © 1987 by Cleveland Amory (text); copyright © 1987 by Edith Allard (illustrations). By permission of Little, Brown and Co., Inc.

"Kitty at the Keyboard" by Steve Dale. Copyright © 2OO5 by Steve Dale.

"Spooky Gives Us a Scare" by Janine Adams. Copyright © 2OO5 by Janine Adams.

"My Mother's Cat" by Renie Burghardt from the book Angel Cats . Copyright © 2004 by Allen and Linda Anderson. Reprinted with permission of New World Library, Novato, Calif.

"The Real Thing" by Beth Adelman. Copyright © 2OO5 by Beth Adelman.

"Bengal Turkey Divine" by Miriam Fields-Babineau. Copyright © 2OO5 by Miriam Fields-Babineau.

Excerpt from Rest in Pieces by Rita Mae Brown, copyright © 1992 by American Artist, Inc. Used by permission of Bantam Books, a division of Random House, Inc.

"Letter to Louise, Part III: Being the Meditations of Midnight Louie in New York City" from Cat in a Golden Garland

by Carole Nelson Douglas. Copyright © 1997 ky the author and reprinted by permission of St. Martin's Press, LLC.

"The Noel Cat" by Shirley Rousseau Murphy. Copyright © 2OO5 by Shirley Rousseau Murphy.

"Kitty 'Box'-ing Day" by Betsy Stowe. Copyright © 2OO5 by Betsy Stowe.

"The Mystery of Musetta's Mistletoe" by Clea Simon. Copyright © 2OO5 by Clea Simon.

"Holiday Safety" by Christine Church. Copyright © 2OO5 by Christine Church.

"The Purr-fection of Christmas Ritual" by Wendy Christensen. Copyright © 2OO5 by Wendy Christensen.

"God Rest Ye Merry, Kitty Cats" by Laurie Loughlin from Catmas Carols . Copyright © 1993 by Laurie Loughlin. Used with permission of Chronicle Books, LLC, San Francisco.