Making the Cat Laugh (2006)

By Lynn Truss
Lynn Truss rose to fame with her book Eats, Shoots and Leaves, about grammar, and it seems pretty certain this book has been published to cash in on her current popularity. This book is a collection of columns Truss wrote for The Listener, The Times and Woman’s Journal, from the perspective of a single woman with cats, and about topics that concern a single woman with cats who is very fond of grammar (and male tennis players).

I kind of read this book out of spite for all the people that have recommended I read “Marley and Me”, a book about a man and his dog, currently high on the bestseller list, which I resisted because I am a cat person. However, this book had disappointingly little to do with cats, despite its title. Truss’ cats turn up every so often to observe and emphasise some pathetic aspect of her life (cats are very good at that) but otherwise we don’t hear much about them.

Truss is an entertaining writer and I often laughed while reading this book, but there is something curiously unsatisfying about the book as a whole - and something irritating about her style of writing. Mum suggested it might be because she is always ironic, or satirical, or whatever, and never serious about anything, which may be the case. I guess this book has highlighted for me the differences in writing for a newspaper column and writing a novel – they are written for different purposes and read for different reasons. I guess I expect something more intriguing from a novel; it is a long-term investment with long-term rewards. Still, it was good for reading on the train. And maybe Truss would be interested in joining my "Family Last" party - except of course she can't vote in Australia.

Rating: 5 out of 10