Cats of Magic, Mythology and Mystery
by Dr. Karl Shuker
CFZ press, 2012
This sumptuously illustrated book offers a tour through the many mysteries of cats. A few of the topics include cat hybrids (lion x leopard, lion x tiger, and so on), cryptozoological cats (big cats or cat-like predators reported around the world, including saber-tooths and the "Queensland marsupial tiger,") cats in legends, claims of psychic and precognitive cats, "winged cats" with unusual skin conditions, wild felines reported outside (sometimes WAY outside) their known ranges, and even the nutty claims of cat x dog hybrids. The Cheshire Cat, the Eastern cougar, the reports of lions in the United States - every cat a cryptozoologist could think of makes at least a passing appearance.
This is a book meant to survey the entire subject area and provide photos, paintings, drawings, and so forth of as many of the unusual cats as possible. Accordingly, the text does not go into great depth on the individual cases, but there's enough to make it fascinating reading. It is odd there is no bibliography outside Karl's own works. The pages are made of unusually thin, non-glossy paper so I'll be careful with it: I assume this was a tradeoff to keep weight and cost down with so many illustrations. But this lovely, lively book will have your imagination purring.
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