Teaching My Cat To Read: The “very serious” Book Review Podcast

We read “Temeraire: His Majesty's Dragon” by Naomi Novik, the first book in a series of alternative history novels where the Napoleonic Wars are fought with Dragons. We join Captain Will Laurence as he reluctantly forms a bond with a newly hatched dragon and instantly becomes the “I’ve only had Temeraire for a day and a half but if anything happened to him I would kill everyone on this boat a...

In today’s episode, we discuss Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing, including topics such as: the potentially-fatal consequences of cancel culture, how every modern wants what Benedick and Beatrice have, and the incredible power of staging when it comes to telling a story. Join us to find out where we’d put an F-bomb if we had the chance, and what the cat thinks of it all. Content Warnings - Supp...

This week we read The Perilous Life of Jade Yeo by Zen Cho, a historical romance novella, which in the author’s own words is a “happy fluffy story about a single non-white woman at large in 1920s London”. Learn why you shouldn’t make a decision after reading (most) Brontës, the difficulties of being scrutable and loof, and whether we’ve finally found a cad we don’t want to punch? This novella is a...

In which Poirot encounters: a  display of truly marvellous project management, some good old-fashioned European Racism (™), and a lot of snow. Join us for a discussion of Agatha Christie’s most famous Poirot story, and find out what the cat will think. Content Warnings Discussions of murder, suicide and child death. Support the show Recommend us a Book! If there’s a book you want to recommend to u...

One day you’re a pillar of fire doing neat tricks to impress your followers, the next you’re a tortoise hurtling towards the ground at frightening speed.  Listen to our podcast to find out what happens next.  Featuring, comparative reading with Ursula K. Le Guin and Neil Gaiman, and theoretical theology. What will we think, and more importantly what will the cat think? Please check out friends of...

It's our Christmas Episode! Join Eli, M, Lotti and the Cat(s!) as they discuss everything about “A Christmas Carol” By Charles Dickens, a touching and funny classic novel that we recommend everyone reads, or at least watches the Muppet version.  Can Charles Dickens save Christmas? How many ghosts can you see while still being in denial about ghosts? Would Scrooge survive a horror film? And wh...

This week Lotti introduces Eli and M to the wonders of the Cosmere, with The Emperor’s Soul by Brandon Sanderson. When Shai is caught trying to switch a painting with a Forged fraud of her own making, she must earn her freedom by performing another Forgery, this time on the soul of the Emperor himself! We re-encounter the arch-nemesis that is pronouncing fantasy names, discuss modem art, and ponde...

Summary of us reading Persuasion by Jane Austen: Anne Elliot: "I have done nothing wrong in my life, ever" Us: "We know this, and we love you" Join the team as they review this classic novel, with the cat! Content Warnings None Support the show Recommend us a Book! If there’s a book you want to recommend to us to read, just send us a message/email and we’ll pop it on our long l...

Artemis isn’t actually evil, he’s just 12. What 12 year old wouldn’t do a kidnapping? Join us for a discussion of the ethics of press-ganging prisoners into participating in your retrieval missions, troll welfare and adolescent Irish crime lords. Spoilers: the cat approves of this one. Colne Valley Books are a second hand bookshop with an extensive collection of fiction, non-fiction and antiquaria...

The gang read the original vampire story, Dracula by Bram Stoker,  the origin of so many clichés. We discuss: How much you can fix with brandy? Is the most disturbing thing about Dracula his moustache? Can you enjoy this if you’re not a horror fan? Listen to find out which bits of this story made us cry their hearts out, if Victorian book actually pretty feminist and how important the sacred dutie...

Join us for a discussion of Sabriel, the first book in the Old Kingdom series by Garth Nix - and the first book we’ve reviewed which actually features a cat (well, sort of). Also featuring: musical necromancy, an Enid Blyton schoolgirl saving the world, and dangers of having your entire kingdom’s government controlled by a single family which could theoretically be wiped out by a single traitor. W...

Eli, Em and Lotti take a look at a “Scandal in Bohemia” its many adaptations, and where they fall short. Who is the real Irene Adler? Are any of the adaptations worth watching? And what does this story tell us about the classic character Sherlock Holmes? Content Tags Discussion of the portrayal of sex work in BBC’s Sherlock  Support the show Recommend us a Book! If there’s a book you want to recom...

Join us for a ‘very serious’ review Neil Gaiman’s Anansi Boys. In this episode, we discuss:our favourite characters, which characters we want to fight, and the perils of keeping flamingos in a magic room. What score will the cat give the book? Listen to find out! Follow us on social media for all the latest behind the scenes updates, blog posts on other books we’ve read, and many photos of the cat...

Join us for a review of Jane Austen’s classic Pride and Prejudice. What makes it so readable even to this day? Which adaptation is the best? Are there enough ribbons in this book to keep the cat interested? Editor note: we recommend "Why I No Longer Talk to White People about Race" by Reni Eddo-Lodge. As per the author's request if you want to read this book, please try and borrow t...

Welcome to the new, very serious, book review podcast, Teaching my Cat to Read. First episode will be up next weekend! Support the show Recommend us a Book! If there’s a book you want to recommend to us to read, just send us a message/email and we’ll pop it on our long list (but please read our review policy on our website first for the books we accept). Social Media Website: https://teachingmycat...