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The Cat Who Smelled a Rat
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Plot Summary of The Cat Who Smelled a Rat
"
Lilian Jackson Braun
Putnam, Feb 2001, 23.95, 240 pp.
ISBN: 0399146652

    Everyone in Moose County, 400 miles north of everywhere, is waiting for the Big One, the first gigantic snowstorm of the season. It has been a hot dry summer with many brushfires occurring, especially near the stack houses aligning the ten abandoned mines.

    Newspaper columnist and philanthropist Jim Qwilleran thinks it is strange that the fires seem so concentrated in one spot. His two felines, Koko and Yum Yum agree. Koko always uses her extrasensory abilities to alert Jim before a catastrophe occurs. The cat has already predicted two of the fires and gives out a howl when someone shoots a fire patrol volunteer. When a volunteer on fire patrol watch is murdered, Jim and his associates begin to investigate.

    Fans of “The Cat Who” mysteries will want to read Lilian Jackson Braun's latest cute cozy, THE CAT WHO SMELLED A RAT. This novel targets an audience who wants no graphic violence in their literature while the felines' antics will warm the hearts of pet lovers. The twenty-fourth novel in this long running series retains the preciousness of all its predecessors and hopefully the author will provide her audience with another twenty-four novels.

Harriet Klausner
"

Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar



Review Analysis of The Cat Who Smelled a Rat
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot

Composition of Book
descript. of violence and chases - 20%
Planning/preparing, gather info, debate puzzles/motives - 40%
Feelings, relationships, character bio/development - 20%
How society works & physical descript. (people, objects, places) - 20%




How difficult to spot villain? - Difficult, but some clues given
Time/era of story: - 1980's-1999
Kind of investigator - dog/cat investigator
Kid or adult book? - Adult or Young Adult Book
Crime Thriller Yes
Murder Mystery (killer unknown) Yes

Main Character
Gender - Male
Profession/status: - journalist
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events? Yes
How much violence does he/she use? - none
How sensitive is this character? - sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor - Strong but gentle sense of humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Main Adversary
Identity: - Male
Age: - 20's-30's
Eccentric: Yes - emotionally unstable
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in: - an average amount
How sensitive is this character? - hard edged
Sense of humor - Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence - Average intelligence
Physique - average physique

Setting
United States Yes
The US: - Midwest
Small town? Yes
Small town people: - nice, like Andy/Opie/Aunt Bee

Style
Part of a series? Yes
Accounts of torture and death? - generic/vague references to death/punishment
How many deaths? - 2
Unusual forms of death - blunt clubbing (like seals)
Unusual form of death? Yes
Amount of dialog - significantly more descript than dialog
Most similar books to The Cat Who Smelled a Rat
Rest in Pieces by Rita Mae Brown
Cat to the Dogs by Shirley Rousseau Murphy
Cat in the Dark by Shirley Rousseau Murphy
The Cat Who Brought Down the House by Lilian Jackson Braun
Wolf Tracks by Ann Campbell


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