Horace Walpole's Cat
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Horace Walpole's CatHorace Walpole's Catby Christopher Frayling, illustrated by Richard Bentley, William Blake & Kathleen Hale
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In Memory of Vixen

In Memory of Vixen

Memorial for my beloved cat Vixen
1988-2012

Horace Walpole's Cat

Horace Walpole's Cat

Horace Walpole's Cat
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by Christopher Frayling, illustrated by Richard Bentley, William Blake & Kathleen Hale
The tragic death of Walpole's cat and the Thomas Gray poem written in her honor: the true story of what happened, and a look at the lively social and cultural scene in the eighteenth century. This delightful compendium focuses on one of the best-loved poems in the English language, but in the process it takes the reader on an engaging romp through the literary, intellectual, and cultural world of the eighteenth century. It brings alive a host of engaging characters: Horace Walpole himself (one of the great letter writers of all time, wit, raconteur; the curmudgeonly Dr. Johnson (who nevertheless had "a very fine cat indeed") and his sometimes recalcitrant biographer James Boswell; and a cast of "handsome cats," including Selima and Zama. 

In February 1747, Selima the tabby fell into a Chinese blue and white porcelain tub in Walpole's house in London's Mayfair and never returned to dry land. The poem by Thomas Gray, "Ode on the Death of a Favourite Cat, Drowned in a Tub of Gold-fishes," was written as her mock epitaph. Here is the true history of the event, and a look at the sparkling social and cultural life of the period. It is beautifully illustrated with Richard Bentley's original series of designs for the poem, William Blake's wonderful watercolors of some fifty years later, and the unpublished color illustrations produced in the 1940s by the noted children's book illustrator Kathleen Hale, of Orlando the Marmalade Cat fame. 

Hardcover book from Thames & Hudson was released October 26, 2009 and has 79 pages. Available to backorder.
Reading Level: college/undergraduate
About OldMaidCatLady.com

About OldMaidCatLady.com

We're a small business, founded by a genuine old maid cat lady who loves her cat the same as if she were her child, just like you do yours. All products are shipped directly to you from our suppliers; we don't maintain any inventory. This eliminates double shipping, warehousing and staffing that would drive up costs, allowing us to price our items as reasonably as possible. When it comes to shipping, we charge you only what our suppliers charge us to ship the items to you. Those retailers who offer you "free" shipping are only raising their prices to cover the cost of shipping, and we'd rather be honest with you about it. If our suppliers include shipping in the prices of the items, we offer the same to you. We try to treat all our customers the way we'd like to be treated ourselves, and appreciate your taking the time to get to know us a little. If you'd like to know more, click on the "About Us" link in the menu.
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