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Audiobook Review: The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa

There are cat people. There are dog people. And then there are the rest. This little story is a gem for the first category, in which I happen to belong.

Nana is an independent, yet loyal, wise and quirky cat protagonist with strong views on various aspects of life. He is a cool cat on the outside with a warm heart on the inside and generally he possesses many of the characteristics, which make cats so endearing to us. Most of the story is narrated by Nana, who regularly expresses sentiments we humans would like to think cats would express, if they could speak.

From the 2018 movie: The Travelling Cat Chronicles

Nana’s human is called Satoru. Together they go on a long journey in Satoru’s car.

Our silver van was like a magic carriage. Every time I got into it, it carried me to a place I’d never been before. At that moment, we were without a doubt the greatest travelers in the world. And I was the world’s greatest traveling cat.

The pair of them see wonderful things, which they will both remember for the rest of their lives, but in essence this road trip is a journey through Satoru’s life. On the trip they visit various people, who have been important for Satoru at some stage in his life and a large part of the novel consists of flashbacks to Satoru’s childhood and youth and his history with the people they visit.

Nana from The Travelling Cat Chronicles might have looked like this as a kitten.

The relationship between Nana and Satoru is wonderfully described and very recognisable for people who own cats (or are owned by cats). I was afraid it was going to be overly sentimental, but that was not the case. Furthermore, this novel is so much more than a story about a cat and a man. It is about friendship, loyalty, loss, jealousy, love, decency, … In short, it’s about life.

Hiro Arikawa’s writing has this light, poignant touch, which goes straight to the heart and makes me feel sad and smile at the same time. I sensed a reminiscence to Kazuo Ishiguro’s writing, which has the same effect on me.

Fukushi Sota: Satoru in movie

The Travelling Cat Chronicles is a slow, introspective story which deserves to be taken in bit by bit and which needs time to be absorbed afterwards. It will most likely get you reflecting on life – and it may just make you wish you had a cat.

My story will be over soon. But it’s not something to be sad about. As we count up the memories from one journey, we head off on another. Remembering those who went ahead. Remembering those who will follow after. And someday, we will meet all those people again, out beyond the horizon.

Rating: 4 out of 5.
Title: The Travelling Cat Chronicles [2012] 
Author: Hiro Arikawa
Format: Audiobook, narrated by George Blagden
Genre: General Fiction

34 comments

  1. I was thinking I’m the others, I love both cats and dogs 🙂 haha but that wasn’t what you meant.

    I have this novel but I’m procrastinating for reading this.. I’m scared for how emotional it might make feel. Maybe I should just pick up the courage because it sounds amazing. I had no idea this was a movie too. I’d rather read the book first though and imagine it how I like.

    • Did you grow up with cats and dogs? Being a cat / dog person may have to do with personality, but I suspect it also depends on which pets you had as a child.

      Anyway. Unless you are an excessively cold human being, this one will make you feel emotional. But to me, that is not a bad thing. There is certainly sadness and melancholy, but there is also a lot of feel-good moments and despite the sadness, the books is uplifting as well. Yes, that sounded completely contradictory, but I can only say: read it! 😊

      • I had a dog as a teenager and also later on when I moved out. I didn’t see myself as a cat person and thought they didn’t give as much friendship as a dog since the dog is the loyal one and cats more independent but I was wrong. I have the sweetest little furrball now who wandered in one day and chose to stay here 😊 So I love them both now.
        Well as long as it’s not all sad I’m in. I’m looking even more forward to reading to it now!

        • Ah, I see. I had a cat when I grew up, but never a dog. Perhaps, that is why I prefer cats. I must admit, I do find their independence charming, but I guess some dogs are like that as well.

          Lovely story about your cat.😸 Nana from the book was also a stray. Do you have a photo of your cat on your blog?

          • Eh well she wasn’t reaaally a stray, I found out later she lived a few doors down (but she’s an indoor cat so I hadn’t seen her before) but they took another cat and they didn’t get on well so she kind of packed it in and found much more peace and quiet here 😄. I have absolutely no idea what age she is but she must be at least 7, 8 years now. I think she’s in a post about a bookworm hobby when I was making a puzzle and she supervised, but there are a few of her with books on my instagram (/ingstje).
            So this book didn’t make you decide to take another cat? So many need rescuing and I get a feeling you could give one a happy home 😉

          • Ah ok. So she moved apartments 🙂 . I am glad she ended up at your place! Will look for her on your blog. Actually, I don’t have a cat. Living in central London and spending a lot of time away from home, is just not compatible with having pets. But reading The Travelling Cat Chronicles definitely made me want to have one!

          • Thank you ☺️ Ah well I wanted to live in London, until now then 😉 She’s all the colors, you’ll see 😊 Btw, you don’t need to install the app of instagram to see, you can see photos normally when you just type it (www.instagram.com/ingstje) in the browser of your computer. Well I think so anyway 🤔 Thanks! Wishing you a good Friday and a great weekend already! xxx

    • Thanks! Yes, I think it worked well. The novel was well-balanced between sweet and sour so to speak and Nana was such a great character.

  4. I don’t often find animal narrators work too well, but from your review it sounds as if the author made Nana believable. Maybe I’ll buy this one for Tommy and Tuppence for Christmas – they could do with learning that some cats manage to go on car journeys without all the mewling and howling and distracting the driver that they like to indulge in. Mind you, they always know that it’s the dreaded vet awaiting them at the end of the trip… 😉

    • I don’t have much experience with animal narrators, but I remember a few horrible examples. Nana was great though. Smart, sarky and cool, but with a warm heart. I think you would approve of him. Whether the same would be the case for Tommy and Tuppence is perhaps more questionable. I understand their uproar, though. If I connected driving with an unpleasant visit to the doctor, I might object as well.

    • Yes, probably you don’t have to be a cat person to love this story and there is a lot more to it than the relationship between human and cat. Thanks 😊

  7. Such a lovely review! You captured the poignancy of this one perfectly and now I definitely want to try the audio.

    I had both cats and dogs growing up, so I love both, but as an adult, I’ve only had cats. Now that I have four cats and am completely outnumbered, I probably won’t be able to fit a dog! ♥️ 🐱

    • Aww thanks! Did you write a review of this one? (Tried to look, but couldn’t find it). Ooh, four cats? Harper, Dickens and Hemy? Am I missing something? It sounds like you have more than enough to see too, with four cats. It might create chaos in your house, if you were to throw a dog into the mix!😼🐶

  9. I LOVED this when I read it early in the year. Found it emotional and cried!
    Had no idea there was a film of it, i need to watch 🙂

    • I’m glad you loved it as well, it’s certainly an emotional story! Unfortunately, I don’t know if the film has been distributed widely outside of Japan.

    • Yes, it is lovely, in a quiet, melancholic way. It is probably not for readers, who prefer a bit of action in their novels, it really is rather slow.

      • I don’t mind slow books, I gravitate towards them nowadays soI think I’ll give it a try. Thank you for the recommendation (and the follow ☺️)

        • You are welcome on both accounts, your blog does look interesting! I hope you will enjoy The Travelling Cat Chronicles, if you decide to go ahead – and I will look out for a review!

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