On Cats

‘A cat is only ITSELF, representative of the strong forces of life that won’t let go’

For Charles Bukowski there was something majestic and elemental about cats. He considered them to be sentient beings, whose searing gaze could penetrate deep into our being. Cats see into us; they are on to something.

An illuminating portrait of one very special writer and a lifelong relationship with the animals he considered his most profound teachers, On Cats brings together Bukowski’s reflections on the ruthless, resilient, indigent and endearing creatures he so admired.

‘The cat is the beautiful devil.’

Charles Bukowski had a soft spot for cats. He saw something majestic and elemental about them, something conveyed by the intensity of their searing gaze. Cats see into us; they are on to something.

At the same time, in On Cats, we see cats at their most ruthless and most resilient: they are fighters, hunters, survivors who command awe and respect as they grip tightly onto the world around them.
‘A cat is only ITSELF,’ Bukowski wrote. ‘Representative of the strong forces of life that won’t let go.’

Funny, poignant, tough and tender, On Cats collects the writer’s reflections on the animals he so admired. Bukowski’s cats are seen fighting and stalking their prey, crawling across his typewritten pages and waking him up with claws across the face. But they are also found standing quietly by, sources of inspiration and courage and providers of a kind of gentle, insistent care. Unsentimental but filled with deep feeling, On Cats reveals Bukowski’s unique way of looking at the world through his relationship with the animals he considered among his most profound teachers.