I & Claudius: Travels With My Cat

by Clare De Vries

Release Date: October, 2000

Edition: Paperback

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Traveling with Gusto

Of all travel books I've read so far, this one has got to be the most hilarious and magnificent. Clare writes with gusto and love for her cat and of travel, and one feels as if they're right along with the couple as they travel throughout the USA. Another great novel to read by De Vries is "Of Cats and Kings", which is equally, if not more, stunning and entertaining. Readers don't have to be cat people to laugh at De Vries antics and mishaps. I would highly reccommend this novel to any female of any age, for it deals with feminine humor and romance.

Made me want (briefly) to take a road trip with my cat.

Although Clare de Vries is a bit too snarky for stretches of this book, she is more often an extremely gifted writer and chronicle-maker. I bought I & Claudius because of the quotes on the cover -- more the "Thelma & Louise with a cat" than the "Hunter S. Thompson + Bridget Jones" one -- and then hoped it would be more like Steinbeck's Travels with Charley. And it was. Claudius, the venerable cat of the title, is a natural traveler, with plenty of attitude. And Clare, as his keeper and court scribe, does him considerable justice. I could have done without a lot of the Men Met On The Road information, but again, she more than made up for it with her sweet, splendid descriptions of Claudius and the changing landscape both of her heart and of the American roadside. There were also some incredibly funny moments having to do with both Clare's own wackiness and her Brit-out-of-water encounters with Americans. If you like cats or road trips, or especially both, this book will do you well.