Reviewed by Jay Scott Kanes
A new book, A Stray Cat on Lamma (Susanna Ng, 2009, Chinese, English and Japanese, 112 pages, HK$88) boosts the reputation of Hong Kong's Lamma Island as a haven for animals and their human admirers.
Author and publisher Susanna Ng, one of the island's most-adoring pet-owners, has written the story of Bobo, a multi-colored stray cat whom she adopted from the roadside near her home. The theme revolves around how greatly Bobo and Bobby, Susanna's previous cat, enriched her life.
The two felines placed Susanna in a “happy together” family of three. “Everyday my two children would wait for me to come back from work. Bobo slept next to me, rain or shine, while Bobby would only join us in the cold weather. Bobo was my alarm clock. If I failed to wake up in the mornings, she would pat on my face. However, once she got the message that I did not want to get up at that time, she would jump down from bed, do her business, play a little and then keep an eye on me from the door. She was my guardian angel.”
Such human-animal kinship leads to good and bad times, the latter often involving veterinarians. Sincerely and eagerly, Susanna shares the moments of quiet satisfaction, camaraderie, laughter and tears that most pet-owners experience. “Right, Bobo is the best and the most precious gift I received from God!”
Ultimately, Bobo falls gravely ill, but that's part of having pets too. In Susanna's case, grief inspired the book. She honors Bobo by writing about their treasured nine years together.
Few readers will complete the final pages without shedding tears too. As for the author, she must have needed windshield wipers for her eyes to see properly when writing.
Susanna says she loves children, animals and nature. Her previous books include My Student Life in Japan, Interesting Cantonese and My First Teardrop.
As much as Susanna adores cats, she appreciates Lamma similarly. “I moved to Lamma from Hong Kong Island back in 1992,” she said. “Almost immediately, I fell deeply in love with its natural environment, every flower, every twig, each view and each happenstance.”
A Stray Cat on Lamma mixes formidable strengths with a few weaknesses. Most impressively, Susanna's passion for her pets punctuates every paragraph and page. For this labor of love, she used quality paper and many color photos of the cats and Lamma.
Surprisingly, the book is trilingual. Rosalind Lee translated into English and Takehara San into Japanese. Susanna wanted three languages because her research suggested that Bobo came from “a Japanese tri-color breed”.
Unfortunately, the English translation has muddled grammar, which may explain why the book will sell mostly in Chinese bookshops. Also, some photos, especially of the cats, have focus problems. But with Susanna’s motives being so pure and admirable, who wants to complain?
As a bonus, the awkward English adds some welcome (albeit probably unintentional) humor. “My home sweet home is situated upon a slope in Lamma Island, with as many foreigners residing here as cats and dogs of all sizes, running free in the open without any worries of the city traffic.” Gosh! Why are the foreigners allowed to “run free”? That sounds dangerous.
The book benefits from strong design work and an eye-catching cover by Alex Ng, one of Susanna's neighbors on that Lamma hillside. Alex has done outstanding work before, and his reputation continues to grow.
Sentiments in A Stray Cat on Lamma suggest that some of the locals prefer the company of pets over people. Contrary to what a few surly critics may say, there's nothing wrong with that.
Approval rating: 77 per cent.
(July 3, 2009)
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