The Catsitters

I read "The Catsitters" in two sittings. It would have been one sitting, but I had to rip myself away from reading to go to work. Catsitters is a fun, witty, insightful read and I really enjoyed it. Johnny is an actor who mostly is doing television commercials. When he gets dumped by his girlfriend, Nicole, he turns to his best friend Darlene for comfort, What Darlene offers is advice on turning Johnny from a bachelor to an "unmarried man." This advice is pretty humorous, but also is dead on. As another reviewer mentioned, it really is hard to believe that a man wrote this book! The story takes some unexpected turns that really kept things interesting. This book had me laughing and crying. I would highly recommend it.

Funny send up of that Classic American Journey from the small town or boring suburb to the Big Apple. Wolcott, with a clear eye and much dry, subtle humor, deals with the perennial provincial who wants To Make It Big In New York - make it big in work, in love, in life-style, but who ends up being just one of the many "real" New Yorkers whose only accomplishment is, alas, their initial move to New York. This book reminded me of the delightful novels of Dawn Powell, another clear-eyed critic of the New York scene whose wit, urbanity and Greek/Roman classical neutrality allows her readers to see behind the pipe-dreams and fantasies with which "new" New Yorkers indulge themselves. This book's only possible problem is it will not encourage the day-dreams of the types of persons it so well describes. But if you're the kind of reader who likes when, say, The Fool in *King Lear* punctures the pomposities and self-delusions of the King using wit and good sense, then you'll like *The Catsitters*. Woolcott is like a literary jester poking fun at the delusions of certain middle class folk desperate to make it in New York but sadly, without that little bit of required talent. A wonderful tale of modern New York and the American Dream, I sometimes wondered if the author didn't have some British blood in him, so much did he remind me of the attitudes of Evelyn Waugh and Kingsley Amis, for example. But then Edmund Wilson and H. L. Mencken wrote like this, too. Superb.

I could not believe this book was written by a man! This was so accurate, entertaining, and fun to read. James Wolcott is an extremely talented author with incredible insight into the femal mind. The story revolves around a struggling actor named Johnny Downs who lives with his cat. His best friend Darlene plots to make Johnny into husband material and begins controlling his every move around the ladies. Darlene instructs, "At dinner, mirror her moves...make it seem as if you are in unconscious harmony with her...Then do the glass test...slide your water glass close to hers...If she leaves her glass in place, it means she's comfortable in your presence. But if she pulls her glass back, it means she's in a defensive posture."And Darlene on walking: "The Pocketbook Test is even more revealing than the Glass Test. If Claudia strolls with her pocketbook on the side away from you, she's leaving the near side open, making her hand available for holding...If she slings her pocketbook over the arm closest to you, it means she's setting up a protective barrier."Soon, Johnny has actual dates and then girlfriends. But does Darlene have Johnny's best interests at heart? And why do his relationships suddenly go awry? Will Johhnny find sucess as an actor? Will Johnny find true love? You will love this book and its sharp dialogue. Pass it on to friends! I can't wait for Wolcott's next novel.

The acerbic journalist turns in a first-rate novel about a journeyman New York actor who goes through some major life transitions. If Laurie Colwin or Tom Perrotta speak to you, Wolcott will do so as well. The protagonist and supporting cast quickly grow on you; minor characters are sketched with economy and grace. One of those novels for which, as you turn the final page, you are already casting the movie in your mind.

If this book is ever made into a movie, the theme song oughta be "It's A Shame (The way you mess around with your man" by the Detroit Spinners. Even though the narrator goes on little trips to small southern towns, it's a New York story filled with quirky urban detail. Some passages induce pangs of conscience if you're the kind of chick who has occasionally been tempted by a sweet, incompetent guy. There are lots of couples in Manhattan who look like Johnny and Nicole -- cute babe who COULD be with a player, semi-successful guy who is better to have as a drinking buddy rather than a boyfriend. I once had a boyfriend who was a lot like Johnny Downs except that he had no cat. When you break up, you feel a certain relief to be free of these guys but it's sobering to see what life looks like from their point of view. The author manages to show you this with a certain weird grace and sensitivity -- but doesn't take himself too seriously.I love the smallest details that catch Wolcott's attention and think he's a very funny writer. I can't wait to read his next book.