The Cat Who Saved the Library

“Cats, books, young love, and adventure: catnip for a variety of readers!” —Kirkus Reviews “Whimsical and wise.”—Shelf Awareness The long-awaited sequel to the #1 international bestseller The Cat Who Saved Books—an uplifting tale from Japan about a talking cat, a book-loving heroine, and the power of books to make a difference in the world. A chronic asthma condition prevents thirteen-year-old Nanami from playing sports or spending time with her friends after school. But nothing can stop her from one of her favorite activities. Nanami loves to read and happily spends much of her free time in the library, cocooned among the stacks. Then one day, Nanami notices that, despite the library being as deserted as ever, some of her favorite books, including literary classics like Arsène Lupin, Gentleman Thief and Anne of Green Gables are disappearing from the shelves. When she alerts the library staff, they dismiss her concerns. But just as Nanami is about to return to her reading, she spots a suspicious man in a gray suit. Eager to discover what he's up to, she follows him. The chase is cut short when Nanami suffers an asthma attack. By the time she catches her breath, the man has disappeared and all that is left behind is a mysterious light filtering through the library's familiar passageways. That's when Tiger, the talking tabby cat who saves books, comes to the rescue. Are Nanami and Tiger prepared to face the dangerous challenges that lie ahead in this compelling adventure story? Why are faceless gray soldiers burning books in a stone castle? And what happened to Rintaro, the socially withdrawn hero who helped Tiger save books in a second-hand bookshop? At a time of increased book bannings worldwide, Sosuke Natsukawa urges us not to underestimate the power of great literature—and to be prepared to defend our freedom to choose. Translated from the Japanese by Louise Heal Kawai

Sosuke Natsukawa is a Japanese physician and novelist. He graduated from the Shinshu University medical school and practices medicine at a hospital in the largely rural prefecture of Nagano. His multi-volume debut novel, Kamisama no Karute (God's Medical Records), has won several prizes and has sold over three million copies in Japan. He is the author of the number one international bestseller The Cat Who Saved Books. The Cat Who Saved the Library is the second book in his series featuring Tiger the talking tabby cat.