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The Christmas Day Kitten | December 22, 2011

by James Herriot illustrated by Ruth Brown (Macmillan, Sept. 1993)

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The Christmas Day Kitten by James Herriot, illustrated by Ruth Brown. “Christmas can never go by without my remembering a certain little cat,” begins this true story, based on author James Herriot’s experiences as an English country vet. As winter deepens, Mrs. Pickering and her 3 drowsy bassett hounds are visited from time to time by a mysterious little female cat who briefly warms herself by the hearth before slipping away again. The cat’s last visit on Christmas Eve is both utterly heartbreaking and life-affirming – a perfect tearjerker. Brown’s rich paintings capture all the resplendent warmth of home in the wintertime. For me, Christmas can never go by without my remembering a certain little book.


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