February's book focuses on love; the love of one cat for an entire town and the town's love for that cat.
The cat's name is Dewey, to be more specific Dewey Readmore Books and the town is Spencer, Iowa.
Dewey's story begins when he was found in the library's book drop box on the coldest day of the year. He arrived at a difficult time for the town of Spencer; a time when people were faced with the decision to give up their family's land and completely start over somewhere else or continue to hope that things will turn around (and hopefully soon).
Vicki Myron, who found Dewey on that fateful day wrote:
I don't want to make too much of this one turn of events, because Dewey didn't put food on anyone's table. He didn't create jobs. He didn't turn our economy around. But one of the worst things about bad times is the effect on your mind. Bad times drain you of energy. They taint everything in your life. Bad news is as poisonous as bad bread. At the very least, Dewey was a distraction.
As you read the book, you learn that Dewey is much more than a distraction though. Somehow, Dewey seemed to find the people that needed him the most. He made a connection with people and somehow was able to make everyone feel special.
...Dewey jumped into their laps. That's when I saw the smiles. It wasn't just that Dewey sat with them for ten or fifteen minutes; it was that he had singled them out for special attention. By the end of his first year, dozens of patrons were telling me, "I know Dewey likes everyone, but I have a special relationship with him."
The book takes you through all 19 years of Dewey's life and his "special" relationship with several people in the town including Crystal, a girl in a wheelchair, a little boy allergic to cats, and a homeless man. Even though Dewey never left the library (except once) his story includes people from other towns in Iowa, other cities in the United States, and even people in the country of Japan.
Of course his most special relationship was with Vicki, his "mom", the one that discovered him in the library drop box. Dewey was able to help heal some of her wounds.
Somehow Dewey knew when I needed a little nudge or a warm body, and he knew when the best thing for me was a stupid, mindless game of hid-and-seek. And whatever I needed, he'd give me, without thought, without wanting something in return, and without me asking.
Ever since I finished reading this book, I've been thinking about Rocky and Boaz (my cat and dog) a little differently. I'm learning to treasure my relationship with each of them; loving them just a little bit more. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, touched me.
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| Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World By Vicki Myron with Bret Witter |
Dewey's story begins when he was found in the library's book drop box on the coldest day of the year. He arrived at a difficult time for the town of Spencer; a time when people were faced with the decision to give up their family's land and completely start over somewhere else or continue to hope that things will turn around (and hopefully soon).
Vicki Myron, who found Dewey on that fateful day wrote:
I don't want to make too much of this one turn of events, because Dewey didn't put food on anyone's table. He didn't create jobs. He didn't turn our economy around. But one of the worst things about bad times is the effect on your mind. Bad times drain you of energy. They taint everything in your life. Bad news is as poisonous as bad bread. At the very least, Dewey was a distraction.
As you read the book, you learn that Dewey is much more than a distraction though. Somehow, Dewey seemed to find the people that needed him the most. He made a connection with people and somehow was able to make everyone feel special.
...Dewey jumped into their laps. That's when I saw the smiles. It wasn't just that Dewey sat with them for ten or fifteen minutes; it was that he had singled them out for special attention. By the end of his first year, dozens of patrons were telling me, "I know Dewey likes everyone, but I have a special relationship with him."
The book takes you through all 19 years of Dewey's life and his "special" relationship with several people in the town including Crystal, a girl in a wheelchair, a little boy allergic to cats, and a homeless man. Even though Dewey never left the library (except once) his story includes people from other towns in Iowa, other cities in the United States, and even people in the country of Japan.
Of course his most special relationship was with Vicki, his "mom", the one that discovered him in the library drop box. Dewey was able to help heal some of her wounds.
Somehow Dewey knew when I needed a little nudge or a warm body, and he knew when the best thing for me was a stupid, mindless game of hid-and-seek. And whatever I needed, he'd give me, without thought, without wanting something in return, and without me asking.
Ever since I finished reading this book, I've been thinking about Rocky and Boaz (my cat and dog) a little differently. I'm learning to treasure my relationship with each of them; loving them just a little bit more. Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, touched me.
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