Rating: 
Summary: In which Qwill, Koko, and Yum Yum. . .
Review: . . .move to the home of gourmet cook (and high profile attorney) Robert Maus, who owns a residence for artists.Among the residents, Qwill is thrilled to discover his first love and former fiancee, alas, now trapped in an unhappy marriage. With a curious and delightful cast of characters (several of which make appearances in later books) this well-written mystery (with a particularly bizarre murder) was written on the heels of "Off and On" but not published until nearly 20 years later. This is possibly the best of the first four "The Cat Who" novels and is well worth the reader's time.
Rating:
Summary: BEST BOOK EVER
Review: After a hiatus of nearly 20 years since _The Cat Who Turned On and Off_ (1968 to 1986), Qwilleran and his feline supervisors Koko and Yum Yum, returned in this book, picking up nearly where they left off. Qwilleran is still forty-something, and the only way in which he's beginning to feel his age, barring the recent addition of reading glasses, came courtesy of his doctor after an energetic visit to the vet. (The cats feel that examining their teeth is an outrageous invasion of privacy.) His vet-recommended physical resulted in the incredible document he's reading in the Press Club as the story opens: NO FRIED FOODS - NO CREAM SOUPS...(It's hilarious to listen to George Guidall narrating as Qwilleran, reading this to himself as his oblivious colleagues quite innocently order a lunch containing nothing but no-nos, to be topped by Qwill ordering cottage cheese and half a radish.) The universe seems to be conspiring to lure Qwill off his diet: that same day, "Percy" (the managing editor who says 'per se' a lot) gives him the latest of a long string of dubious assignments: restaurant critic, expert on food and wine. (Qwill, of course, was established from his first appearance as a recovering alcoholic who never drinks anything stronger than nutmeg-laced ginger ale.) This leads into the typical pattern of the first four Qwill/Koko adventures: Percy assigns the ex-crime reporter yet another feature rather than City Room beat; the perennial tenant Qwill locates the latest of a series of apartments through contacts on his new beat; and he meets the quirky denizens of his beat before crime strikes (not always murder). Braun begins playing with that formula in this book, as an old flame of Qwill's - now unhappily married - lives in Maus Haus, his new building. (The series took a different tack starting with the next book, _The Cat Who Played Brahms_, introducing Qwill to Moose County.) Maus Haus belongs to the attorney Robert Maus, whose true passion is gourmet cooking. He inherited the place under the terms of a will specifying that it be used to support the arts, having once been the site of an art colony. (The art colony, established by the late owner of _The Morning Rampage_, the town's rival newspaper, dissolved after two artists died mysteriously - the building's physical setting by the river gradually builds up a creepy atmosphere, as images of water and drowning seep into the story.) Maus runs it as a boarding house with a tenant list qualifying as artists - stretching a point to consider cookery an art as well as the pottery practiced by Qwill's former fiancee Joy Wheatley Graham and her disagreeable husband Dan Graham. Notice the food motif running through the names of the tenants: Hixie Rice, a food writer; crossword addict Charlotte Roop, who works for the Heavenly Hash fast-food chain; Rosemary Whiting, the best possible advertisement for her health-food shop; Max Sorrel, whose pride and joy, the exclusive Golden Lamb Chop, has been targeted by a smear campaign that's driving him out of business. Even without a mystery, this could have been developed as a good character-driven novel, explaining among other things Qwill's taste in women (he realizes that most of his girlfriends, and his ex-wife, looked like Joy), and laying a foundation for a gradual shift in his taste from this point to older women. Having last seen her as a young woman, before she broke their engagement and fled Chicago to find herself, Qwill naturally remembers her as she was, which colors his view of the real Joy today - and he never really got her out of his system. Joy, for her part, is still something of a free spirit who can't bear confinement - but she's also, in middle age, admitting that she wants comforts: to exploit the new glazes she's invented rather than spending most of her efforts trying (and failing) to avoid bruising her husband's ego, for one. (Also a potter, Dan lost part of a thumb long before the story opens - limiting the kind and quality of the work he can produce - but he insists on saying of things Joy does, 'that's nothing' and producing loud spiels of his own past glories.) Joy confides to Qwill that she hasn't got the money for a divorce - she's paying a price for trusting Dan's handling of their joint financial arrangements earlier in their marriage - and that she's planning on selling some interesting papers she found while exploring the building (implication is that they involve the old drowning scandal, but she doesn't actually say so). Qwill doesn't want to think of Joy as a blackmailer - and offers her a $750 loan, not telling her that he can just barely afford it. Joy seems genuinely surprised, and signs a note without being asked in her atrocious handwriting. As a recovering alcoholic, Qwill's own finances have only of late years reached an even keel - the money, most of his savings, is the last of a prize he won in a _Fluxion_ writing contest, and losing it would clean him out again. So when Joy disappears again as she did in Qwill's youth, his other childhood friend Arch Riker is the first to say: stop payment on the check, Qwill! But he doesn't want to leave her stuck somewhere without resources, even when the question becomes, has he been had for a sucker? Where did she go - and with whom? NOTE: George Guidall's unabridged audio recording is, as always, excellent, covering the range from Koko and Yum-Yum's yowls and other Siamese commentary to Qwill's pleasant, deep voice to Dan Graham's hokey cliche-ridden speech (although like the author, Guidall slows down and clarifies Dan's rapid-fire mumble after a few initial samples so that we can follow it more easily).
Rating:
Summary: Great Series, Good Writing, Best if Read in Sequence
Review: I got started on this series when a friend lent me a copy of one of the author's early books. It was a hoot and when I found that it was part of a series, I was hooked. This book-on-tape is (I think) the 4th or 5th in the series and assumes the reader has some key facts about the hero (Mr. Q) and the cats (Ko Ko and YumYum) that play important parts in the narrative. So, although this is considered her "best" book by many critics, it's probably wise to start from the begining of the series and work your way up to this one - it will all make more sense that way. Having said that, this was a fun "read" because the plot is tight and logical and the pace is fast. The Narrator (George Guidall - I hope I got that spelling right) is superb. He plays each voice part well and even brings life to the cats through his theatrical "Yowwwwws". I especially like the fact that it was unabridged - the more-common "two cassette" offerings cut out a lot of the chatter that makes these books so much fun. Those who have read others in the series will be surprised to find out that Qwill financially quite poor and is worried about making ends meet (something that get's resolved in later books). But the cats are in rare form and despite the money woes, Mr. Q manages to spoil them with food fit for a king and queen. The author (Lillian Jackson Braun) peppers her prose with interesting facts about pottery, food, wine and life. And she manages to bring everything together in the end - tied neatly with string and a bow. I suggest you find the earlier books and get started on a series that has endured for years and will bring you pleasure for years to come.
Rating: 
Summary: A comfortable read for LJB fans.
Review: My mom loves these books! She gave me this one because she thought I'd love them too. I did enjoy reading it a great deal, but it was a bit bland for me. I don't say that because Lilian Jackson Braun is a poor writer...she's fantastic. Her characters are adorable, loveable and genuine. The setting is creative and chilling. Even the plot is intriguing. When I read, I like my emotions to be stirred a bit more than this book did.
I admit this is the first I've read in the series, and I understand that may contribute to the distaste I have for it, since its actually not the first book of the series. Conflicting reviewers say its the fourth, fifth or sixth book. To really know I think I better check out her website. Those editorial reviews might be more helpful too!
Okay, so what is likeable about this book? Simply put, the characters make the whole series popular. Qwilleran, a reporter with a funny name, is the man who drives the need to know for each case. I like Qwill because he shares many similarities with me. He writes and I've always fancied myself as a reporter. He loves cats; hard not to for me. He also observes people. In this book, Qwilleran reunites with an old flame and finds himself seething at his discovery of her demise.
The other two participants in Braun's whimsical mystery are Koko and Yum Yum. These cats are as personified as Qwill himself and take as much part in the action of the story as others do. One of them even saves Qwill's life in a round-a-bout way. Anybody who loves cats is going to fall hard for these two adorable sidekicks.
Best of all is Braun's affectionate style. She demands nothing more from the reader than a liesurely audience. I like her attention to details affectionate descriptions and penchant for ordinary experiences in extraordinary ways. I also like that she uses interesting facts and victuals of knowledge to satiate the readers cravings for intellectual stimulation.
On the down side, I think I want more emotional or spiritual stimulation from my readings. I tend to cling to books with strong ties to emotional highs and lows. Though this book provided the opportunity for that (especially when Qwill's crush becomes one of the victims), I didn't feel the same excitement I have felt reading other books.
I'm not putting this book down though. I enjoyed it enough to keep it and share with others. My students will also enjoy it's characters. I plan to do a book talk with it for my students at a middle school. I don't really suspect them to read it, but it will make a nice diversion from the ordinary and will introduce them to a great popular contemporary author.
Rating:
Summary: Best of the early cat who books
Review: The early "Cat Who" books have Jim Qwilleran as a middle-aged, impoverished, recovering alcoholic journalist barely hanging on at a newspaper in an un-named Middle West city. Later he moves north 400 miles to a little town and inherits a fortune. "The Cat Who Saw Red" is the last mystery novel that ties him to the gritty city, and it is the best of the city books--by a considerable margin. Other readers have outlined and commented on the plot, so I will say only about it that the plot here is much better than in the previous city novels. It moves better and the outcome is more logical, more satisfying. But the author's forte is not plotting. It is in the remarkable characters, unusual without being grotesque (a fine line to walk), not the least of whom are Qwill's Siamese cats. To those who have read none of the series, it may sound just a little too cutesy, having prescient cats solve crimes, but the writer makes it work and work quite well. The writer also excels in creating atmosphere, the city, the newspaper office, fancy and not so fancy restaurants and Maus Haus, a rather weird boarding house for people interested in food--and in pottery. Like Dickens, Ms. Braun invents no astonishing plots. Her great strength is in making characters come to life in interesting settings. As in Dickens, characters and settings are sufficient.
Rating:
Summary: Best of the early cat who books
Review: The early "Cat Who" books have Jim Qwilleran as a middle-aged, impoverished, recovering alcoholic journalist barely hanging on at a newspaper in an un-named Middle West city. Later he moves north 400 miles to a little town and inherits a fortune. "The Cat Who Saw Red" is the last mystery novel that ties him to the gritty city, and it is the best of the city books--by a considerable margin. Other readers have outlined and commented on the plot, so I will say only about it that the plot here is much better than in the previous city novels. It moves better and the outcome is more logical, more satisfying. But the author's forte is not plotting. It is in the remarkable characters, unusual without being grotesque (a fine line to walk), not the least of whom are Qwill's Siamese cats. To those who have read none of the series, it may sound just a little too cutesy, having prescient cats solve crimes, but the writer makes it work and work quite well. The writer also excels in creating atmosphere, the city, the newspaper office, fancy and not so fancy restaurants and Maus Haus, a rather weird boarding house for people interested in food--and in pottery. Like Dickens, Ms. Braun invents no astonishing plots. Her great strength is in making characters come to life in interesting settings. As in Dickens, characters and settings are sufficient.
Rating:
Summary: Another mystery for Qwill and Koko
Review: The story opens with Qwill, a feature reporter for the Daily Fluxion, once again facing a new assignment and seeking a new residence for himself and his cats. Instead of getting assigned to the crime reporting that he would prefer Qwill finds himself assigned to features on the food scene. This would not be too bad if Qwill had not just been put a diet by his doctor. His editor insists so once again Qwill tackles another area. Soon Qwill finds himself immersed in another facet of society in the big city and again he and his cats move into the middle of it, this time taking up residence in the Maus Haus, a boarding house filled with artists who all have a connection with food. Among his neighbors Qwill is delighted to find his former sweetheart, Joy, who is now married (unhappily). Qwill begins to become involved in Joy's life again only to see her once again abruptly disappear. As time goes by Qwill becomes more and more suspicious of this and other goings on at the Maus House. Ultimately he and the cats solve the mysteries, although not happily. For those unfamiliar with the series this book could be enjoyed by itself, for those who are fans of the later books be aware that the setting is not Moose County but covers an earlier part of Qwill's life. One of the most notable aspects of this story is the introduction of Hixie Rice who will later relocate to Moose County. For fans of the eariler books Odd Bunsen, Mary Duckworth and Robert Maus all return from eariler books.
Rating:
Summary: Nominated for a Edgar
Review: This 4th book of the series, I understand, was nominated for an Edgar (as in Edgar Allen Poe), which is the mystery series equivalent of an Oscar. It deserves such recognition. First, it brought L.J.B. back after a long break from writing (for which fans are forever grateful). Second, it is a truly remarkable crime, probably one of the most unusual ones I've heard about apart from the C.S.I. television series. I still get chills thinking about that crime (I should stress it is not gory, unlike C.S.I., though it may be the "darkest" story in this mystery series) This book does a fine job of fleshing out its primary characters and their current assignment: a curious neighborhood of artists. I was particularly delighted with the descriptions of the cats, so vivid as to create a vicarious cat lover experience for me(I'm allergic to cats, so the printed word is all I can handle). Of course, Koko, the Siamese cat with unusual abilities, steals the show. If you are new to the "Cat Who..." series, this is an excellent starting point. The whole series is one big "can't put it down" pleasure read. Please keep in mind that the entire series is forever evolving, which in some ways is just like real life (and unlike some mystery series where everything resets between stories). So what you read in this book will have remarkable contrasts to books before and much later in the series, though the core elements remain in tact. The series of books divides into two time periods in the protagonist's life: Qwilleran as a reporter in the Big Cities, and later Qwilleran as a columnist in Moose County. The first group is urban, slightly gritty and darker in some ways, the second group is still edgy at times, but is more small-town cozy and much quirkier, in a hometown fashion, which really appeals to the fans. The dividing point for the series is the book "The Cat Who Played Brahms", which is therefore another good starting point. This one, "The Cat Who Saw Red" is in the first group.
Rating:
Summary: Nominated for a Edgar
Review: This 4th book of the series, I understand, was nominated for an Edgar (as in Edgar Allen Poe), which is the mystery series equivalent of an Oscar. It deserves such recognition. First, it brought L.J.B. back after a long break from writing (for which fans are forever grateful). Second, it is a truly remarkable crime, probably one of the most unusual ones I've heard about apart from the C.S.I. television series. I still get chills thinking about that crime (I should stress it is not gory, unlike C.S.I., though it may be the "darkest" story in this mystery series) This book does a fine job of fleshing out its primary characters and their current assignment: a curious neighborhood of artists. I was particularly delighted with the descriptions of the cats, so vivid as to create a vicarious cat lover experience for me(I'm allergic to cats, so the printed word is all I can handle). Of course, Koko, the Siamese cat with unusual abilities, steals the show. If you are new to the "Cat Who..." series, this is an excellent starting point. The whole series is one big "can't put it down" pleasure read. Please keep in mind that the entire series is forever evolving, which in some ways is just like real life (and unlike some mystery series where everything resets between stories). So what you read in this book will have remarkable contrasts to books before and much later in the series, though the core elements remain in tact. The series of books divides into two time periods in the protagonist's life: Qwilleran as a reporter in the Big Cities, and later Qwilleran as a columnist in Moose County. The first group is urban, slightly gritty and darker in some ways, the second group is still edgy at times, but is more small-town cozy and much quirkier, in a hometown fashion, which really appeals to the fans. The dividing point for the series is the book "The Cat Who Played Brahms", which is therefore another good starting point. This one, "The Cat Who Saw Red" is in the first group.
Rating:
Summary: The Cat Who Saw Red
Review: This is my favorite Cat Who... mystery so far. Qwilleran, the newspaper man and his cats Koko and Yum-Yum solve another murder mystery. The setting takes place at the Maus Haus, the vintage apartment home where Qwilleran now lives. All types of odd characters live there, including Dan and Joy Graham. They are artists who make pottery by hand.
Qwilleran knew Joy from along time ago. They grew up together and were boyfriend and girlfriend. One night, after Qwilleran moved into the Maus House, Joy came to visit and told him of her miserable marriage. She wanted to leave her husband. That same night, she disappeared. Qwilleran did not believe the story about her moving to Miami. He did not trust her unsophisticated husband, Dan Graham. Qwilleran would not give up until he solved the mystery! Koko and Yum-Yum help to unravel the clues.
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