I Am a Cat - by Natsume Soseki (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

I, ladies and gentlemen, am a cat. I still don't have a name.

Once a stray kitten, the narrator of this story is now a noble and insightful observer of the bizarre and funny foibles of the human beings in his midst. Enter the upper middle-class world of Meiji-era Japan where a world-weary feline has ample opportunity to dissect the strange ways and convoluted conversations of human people. With acerbic wit and sardonic perspective, this is the whimsical adventure of a very special cat.

'A biting satire of Meiji-era Japan told through the eyes of a sardonic street kitten' Jessie Burton, Guardian

'A mordantly comic evocation of Soseki's deep pessimism about his own humanity and indeed about humankind in general' Lit Hub

'A nonchalant string of anecdotes and wisecracks, told by a fellow who doesn't have a name, and has never caught a mouse, and isn't much good for anything except watching human beings in action' New YorkerTRANSLATED BY NICK BRADLEY

Review Quotes

A nonchalant string of anecdotes and wisecracks, told by a fellow who doesn't have a name, and has never caught a mouse, and isn't much good for anything except watching human beings in action--New Yorker

A biting satire of Meiji-era Japan told through the eyes of a sardonic street kitten--Jessie Burton, Guardian

A mordantly comic evocation of Soseki's deep pessimism about his own humanity and indeed about humankind in general--Lit Hub

Soseki is the representative modern Japanese novelist, a figure of truly national stature--Haruki Murakami

About the Author

Nick Bradley (Translator)
Nick Bradley holds a PhD from UEA focusing on the figure of the cat in Japanese literature. He lived in Japan for many years where he worked as a translator, and currently teaches on the Creative Writing master's program at the University of Cambridge. His debut novel, The Cat and The City, was published in 2020.