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This thread is to discuss We'll Prescribe You a Cat by Syou Ishida.

Pages: 297 pages

Length: 1 month (November)

Participants: Valerie, Lorraine, Elaine, Carri Carey, SarahKat

Everyone reads at their own pace during a Buddy Read. Because participants can be at different parts of the book at different times, it is extremely important to mark spoilers so that the book is not ruined for someone who is not as far along as others!!!

Mark spoilers by placing {spoiler} before the text and {/spoiler} after the text but use the < and > instead of the { and }.

I should be starting this today on audio

I hope to get the book today or tomorrow.

I’ll be starting this next week.

Through Part 1: (view spoiler)[Japanese cozy-cat-core is always enjoyable. This has the same feel as Before the Coffee Gets Cold which I also really like.

The first part was about Shuta (I'm listening to the audio so I'm sorry if I butcher the name spellings). He hates his job but goes to the doctor to try to just be okay with it. The cat he's prescribed causes him to be fired. Predictably, he learns that what he thinks is important is not and he's happier with the way things work out. It seems like he will end up keeping Bee since he couldn't find the clinic at the end? Maybe it will circle back to them at some point but the next part is about a different person. (hide spoiler)]

I've listened to most of this book and haven't had time to update between stories!

Part 2: (view spoiler)[Koga brings a cat home from the clinic but his wife is allergic to cats. Which is a weird thing to forget. I like the way the cat "helps" him sleep by basically keeping him up all night so he sleeps in the train and at his desk. I think I zoned out a bit at the end of this one so I'm not sure what happens with the cat. (hide spoiler)]

Part 3: (view spoiler)[ I really liked this one. Aoba wants to go to therapy and talks to the doctor about cliques. I got a little confused because it switched to her mother's POV when she was a kid and wanted a cat and was told she couldn't have it. But it seemed like this prescribed cat really helped the mother-daughter communication at home.
At the end of this one we find out the clinic is actually a haunted rental in this building. Possibly the doctor and nurse are ghosts? (hide spoiler)]

Part 4: (view spoiler)[Another favorite. I definitely related the most to Tomoka out of any of the patients so far. She is a perfectionist with a dead-beat boyfriend (isn't that always the way??). The doctor prescribes her the wrong cat at first so she thinks she can handle that one and the correct one. The correct one is like exposure therapy for a perfectionist. It zooms around and destroys things. She relies on her unemployed boyfriend to care for the cats during the day and he predictably drops the ball, causing them to have a conversation about their relationship and the expectations thereof. The presence of the cats also helps her lower her standards just a smidge and not be so rigid in her perfections.

She meets someone who looks ex-act-ly like the nurse at the clinic. Twins? Is the nurse really a ghost? (hide spoiler)]

I finally received my copy of We'll Prescribe You a Cat. As a retired psychologist and a former cat owner (I’ve held off recently due to frequent travels), I’m really curious to see how the author uses cats as a therapeutic tool for people in distress. I truly believe in the healing power of cats—my own cat, Grenouille, was the best remedy for sleepless nights; her gentle purring could lull me to sleep in five minutes flat. I will start tomorrow.

Part 5 (the end): (view spoiler)[Oh they're cats! Reincarnated? Or just cats-made-human? Either way I liked that twist. I love that Chitose told Adino (name spelling?) that she ran away by her own choice and it wasn't her fault and it's okay to love another cat. Very sweet.

I really enjoyed the book as a whole. It had the cozy Japanese storytelling-featuring-cats just like The Travelling Cat Chronicles and Before the Coffee Gets Cold, where people learn something deep and meaningful to their situation through some unconventional means. The cats in this book are just the catalyst that helps the characters move through whatever is holding them back. (hide spoiler)]

I finished Part 1 of the book, which centers on Shuta, the patient, and Bee, (view spoiler)[ the cat prescribed to him as part of his therapy. What a charming name for a cat! I’ll have to remember it for the next one I adopt.

Shuta’s issue is that, while he finds his job tolerable, he feels compelled to stay because it’s secure and reliable. This decision, however, leaves him increasingly unhappy. His struggle seems to stem from valuing what he thinks is important over what actually is. Working in a so-so job until retirement in your fifties might be manageable, but spending 30-plus years in a job you hate could take a heavy toll on one’s mental health. (hide spoiler)]

Also read the story about Shuta and Bee - but only after I managed to move my cat Sugar off my legs enough to grab my kindle!
Simple message but no less true for that. Like you, SarahKat, it reminded me of the coffee shop stories.
I like the idea that (view spoiler)[ the clinic only exists when you need it and until you figure things out. I wonder if that will be general fact in the other stories? (hide spoiler)]

Aww cat names! Grenouille and Sugar, so cute! Lorraine, does Grenouille mean frog?

My kitties, both long-hair; one black; one white (so I have no clothes without visible cat hair), are Larfleeze and Bagheera.

Part 2. I appreciated this one because (view spoiler)[ I know how easy it is to get into a negative rut and what a difference even a slight positive tweak to your attitude can make. And of course I loved the fact that they adopted a shelter cat with character rather than a ‘perfect�� bred one (hide spoiler)]
Managed to write this whilst fending off my other cat, Ginger, who is demanding my attention!

SarahKat wrote: "I've listened to most of this book and haven't had time to update between stories!

Part 2: [spoilers removed]

Part 3: I really liked this one. Aoba wants to go to therapy and talks to the doctor..."
Part 3. Yes this was quite a hopeful story - as the doctor suggested (view spoiler)[ a fast acting cat! I’m intrigued by the suggested supernatural elements. If the doctor and nurse are ghosts, maybe the cat really is Yuki (hide spoiler)]

SarahKat wrote: "I've listened to most of this book and haven't had time to update between stories!

Part 2: [spoilers removed]

Part 3: I really liked this one. Aoba wants to go to therapy and talks to the doctor..."
Part 4. This one was quite humorous (view spoiler)[ I’m amazed a perfectionist could cope with Tank’s mayhem but she definitely seemed to lighten up and even gain some new inspiration with the cats. The mystery surrounding the (at times) phantom clinic and its staff remains- hopefully all will be revealed in the final story (hide spoiler)]

SarahKat wrote: "Part 5 (the end): Oh they're cats! Reincarnated? Or just cats-made-human? Either way I liked that twist. I love that Chitose told Adino (name spelling?) that she ran away by her own choice and it w..."
I agree (view spoiler)[ it was a clever twist and there were clues given previously but I only noticed them in retrospect. The humans in the stories are not really ill, they just need something to disrupt their way of thinking and that is what the cats do. Whether they take advantage of this realignment of their perception is then up to them. (hide spoiler)]

Finished. I enjoyed the book (view spoiler)[ it was mainly a light and easy read except for the references to animal cruelty which were upsetting and rather jarring in a novel which is otherwise quite cozy and humorous. It certainly did remind me of other Japanese novels but it didn’t really convince me as much as The Travelling Cat Chronicles or Before the Coffee Gets Cold which were more memorable and original for me. I think the cats needed to be more of a presence as individuals for me to connect more with the stories. It was fine but I won’t be looking for the sequel. (hide spoiler)]

I’ve finished We’ll Prescribe You a Cat. (view spoiler)[ The stories were okay overall, but my favorite was the first one, Bee. It made me laugh and reminded me of my Grenouille. (Yes, SarahKat, Grenouille means “frog,�� but there’s no pun intended about the old English-speaking Canadian nickname for French Canadians when I was a teen! 🤣)

For the other stories, I felt the author didn’t delve deeply enough into the cats�� personalities. As a former cat owner, I know every cat has a distinct personality—they’re definitely not all the same! Like you, I preferred The Travelling Cat Chronicles. I haven’t read Before the Coffee Gets Cold yet. (hide spoiler)] I don’t plan to continue with Syou Ishida series. Instead, I’m considering reading The Full Moon Coffee Shop by Mai Mochizuki.

SarahKat wrote: "Aww cat names! Grenouille and Sugar, so cute! Lorraine, does Grenouille mean frog?

My kitties, both long-hair; one black; one white (so I have no clothes without visible cat hair), are Larfleeze ..."

I had to look Larfleeze and Bagheera in Google. These are very original names! I will keep Bagheera in mind should I get a black cat when I quiet down!

Valerie wrote: "Part 2. I appreciated this one because [spoilers removed]
Managed to write this whilst fending off my other cat, Ginger, who is demanding my attention!"

Valerie, is Ginger the one we see on the picture you use on ŷ������?

Lorraine wrote: "Valerie wrote: "Part 2. I appreciated this one because [spoilers removed]
Managed to write this whilst fending off my other cat, Ginger, who is demanding my attention!"

Valerie, is Ginger the one ..."
Yes that’s him pretending to be super cute ha ha!

Valerie wrote: "Lorraine wrote: "Valerie wrote: "Part 2. I appreciated this one because [spoilers removed]
Managed to write this whilst fending off my other cat, Ginger, who is demanding my attention!"

Valerie, i..."

He is cute! 😍

Starting the audio today!
I wish someone would prescribe me a cat!
I love the relationship the Japanese culture has with cats. Such a perfect pet in a dense busy place

Finished the book and I really enjoyed it!
(view spoiler)[I liked the magical realism aspect and the end of the book when you see the "doctor" and "nurse" as cats. So fun! (hide spoiler)]