A Little Book With Big Charm
Who can resist a wonderful story about cats? Charm (The Amazing Story of a Little Black Cat) written and illustrated by the talented Leyla Atke has it all - it's a story of love, loss and moving on, despite the pain of loss that exists when a loved one dies and leaves. an empty cat-shaped hole in the heart. How can such a gap be filled? And how did the feelings for the handsome black cat that the narrator calls Charm develop?
In Charm, the author weaves a story that is charming in itself. Atke introduces the short but sweet book by recalling in the first chapter how Charm came into her life and changed it forever for the better. Her first-person narrator recounts a “hot summer day in June 2006” when she was “leaving work for a break.” Her reason for leaving is to “get a new haircut,” and she hastily fits the hairstyle into her busy day. Such are the times when fate or God enters into our plans and sometimes, if we are lucky, changes them in a way that we never planned but which brings a touch of happiness into our lives.
At a busy intersection, on her way to a hair appointment, the narrator notices "something small and black" in the middle of the road, between speeding cars. She notices it moving and decides to see what it is, so she stops the car and gets out to take a closer look. When he approaches the object, he sees that it is "a little black kitten sitting in the middle of the road". As the cars "wait for the green light from both sides", he realizes he has a chance to save the kitten and takes her.
Even after the narrator rescues the kitten, she is unsure what to do with it and considers whether to "leave it in the park" that is nearby. However, surprised by how cute and gentle the kitten is, even though it is dirty and its fur "smells like kerosene", she takes it to her aunt. She, like the narrator, has her own cat, but agrees "to hide the kitten only until evening." This allows the narrator to go back to work, think about what happened, and decide whether to keep the kitten.
I don't want to give anything away other than to say that she decided to keep the little black kitten and name him Charm. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Leyla Atke's book and her wonderful illustrations help the reader get a real sense of what Charm must have looked like and how the kitten managed to, well, charm her way into the narrator's life.
However, there is one more thing I should mention about the book. It is written primarily for young teenagers. What eventually happens to Charm is sad, and the description of the cat's body after his death may be too much for younger readers to handle, even if the author is honest in communicating the details. The author also writes that "vaccination and neutering" will be a must for the new kitten entering her life, whom she will see for the first time just "a few steps from Charm's grave" and whom she also decides to call Charm. These elements do not at all (at least not in my humble opinion) detract from the attractiveness of the book; but I thought I should mention these things so that if anyone decides to buy this for younger children, they know that children may come to them with very interesting questions about death and the definition of "castration".
Charm (The Amazing Story of a Little Black Cat) is a really charming story about how much a kitten can affect a person's life and bring them joy. If you are an animal lover and perhaps own a cat or have owned one in the past, you will definitely want to add this wonderful short book to your reading list. It would also make a great gift for the cat lover in your life. I highly recommend Charm to anyone who has owned or currently owns a kitten or cat.