As someone only minimally aware of the Poet Square Cats, I was surprised to find how much I enjoyed Gustafson’s story. She does not make assumptions that you already know every cat’s story, making sure to spend time building out their history. Perhaps my favorite part is the authentic and effective writing style. It feels like Gustafson wrote this, carefully connecting her own life with the lives of these 30 cats. This memoir is an important lesson to show that, as living beings, we are all more connected than we think.

This was beautiful. We can learn so much from the creatures we share this planet with. This book captured the spirit of what we gain from pets - how caring for an animal, without expecting anything in return, teaches us about ourselves, our world, and what love really can be.
This book was wise and thought-provoking, but at the same time so incredibly tender. I didn’t know about Gustafson’s instagram account prior to picking up the book, but I’m grateful she shared these cats and gave us all a chance to learn from them. I was not expecting this experience from a memoir about cats, but it really was such a special book. I will be there on Tuesday to purchase a physical copy to keep on my shelves. 🐱

Everyone stop what you are doing right MEOW and go get you a copy of this book!

Oh. My. Gosh. I went into this book completely blind. I saw the title and the cover and thought, "this is totally my vibe." You see, my husband and I have been rescuing cats for over 10 years. We almost exclusively do bottle baby kittens. We deal with a lot of loss, a lot of bills, a lot of allergies... I thought it would be fun to read someone else's experience. What a delightful surprise to realize the author has a full Instagram and following and ALL THE GOOD she is doing in this world.

If you love cats, animals, volunteerism, just overall doing the right thing, this is the perfect book to add to your collection. I particularly enjoyed how each chapter tied a cat experience with a human experience and how it's all relevant and related.

Beautiful. Perfection... or should I say, puuurrrrrrfection!

Thank you Netgalley and publishers for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

I was not expecting this to be such an impactful book. I absolutely loved it! Courtney Gustafson is a fantastic storyteller. She weaves her own narrative into vignettes of the feral cats she accidentally becomes caretaker for and the many more she goes onto rescue and support.

It’s more than a memoir in cats. It’s the reality of many and illustrates how humanity adapts to get through overwhelming tasks. You don’t have to be a cat person to appreciate this book. It’s about how caring compassion requires community support, how tough it can be to witness ongoing suffering, and how to maintain hope when feeling let down.

Note: While it has a pretty and seemingly light-hearted watercolour cat cover and a catchy title being a memoir in thirty cats, Poets Square delves into some fairly heavy topics involving animal and human welfare. If you’re a mood reader, this one requires mental capacity to tolerate a level of distress.

I am very grateful to Crown Publishing and NetGalley for this ARC

I enjoyed this book immensely. Written with heart and honesty, I can see this memoir finding its way into the hands and hearts of animal lovers everywhere. Courtney interwines her history with discovering her beloved cats in such a natural, informative, and entertaining way that the reader understands how they became her purpose. How a ragtag band of cats made her theirs, finally accepting her care and love, and how she couldn't foresake them. How it led her to help others in her community.

To my knowledge, we don't have any feral animal colonies where I live, so I never really thought about how rapidly intact stray animals may reproduce and create colonies of cats living on the streets, sad, sick and starving. There are organizations like Courtney's that care about the health and welfare of these animals, so if you see feral cats, consult with them.

My sincerest thanks to Netgalley and Crown Publishing for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

Poet's Square is easily the best book that I have read in a good long time. I did not expect this memoir to move me as much as it did. After finishing this arc, I preordered TWO copies because I need to share this with everyone I know.

If you love cats: you need this book. I am a cat lover, proud owner of two, and a volunteer at my local shelter; so I was no stranger to some of the struggles in this book. There are adorable cat pictures printed at the start of each chapter.

If you don't love cats: you still need this book. I was so pleasantly surprised, this book is SO much more than just the story of thirty cats. This the story of humanity. This is a book that changed me as a person and made me look at the people around me differently. Now more than ever (in this political climate) I think this book is essential reading. The ability to get to know other people in these pages who you may have previously negatively judged is so valuable. And the metaphor that's drawn between these sweet ferals and the community was incredibly moving.

My favorite book of the year. I would rate this 50 stars if I could.

This author is new to me, but I will be keeping an eye out for anything else they publish. I loved the story and the characters. The pacing of the story was great and the characters were relatable.

This was a wonderful, wonderful book that made me cry my eyes out as a cat lover. Makes you really want to spend every moment possible with your pets. Inspiring and emotional.

As someone who's basically obsessed with cats, and a cat-mom of two kittens, I admit that it was the cover of 'Poets Square' that pulled me in. I hadn't heard of Courtney Gustafson before, but anyone that pours so so much love, time and energy into caring for cats is immediately wonderful in my book.

This memoir follows how cats (thirty of them to be exact) quite literally took over the author's life after she and her partner moved into a new home during the pandemic. Yep, you read that right: *thirty stray cats*.

What follows is a moving, very often heart-wrenching, story of how the author slowly embraced the chaos and learned the ropes of animal rescue. And ultimately how that transformed her life and career. Each chapter spotlights a different cat (or group of cats), using their stories to dive into broader reflections. Sometimes the topic is about animal welfare, others about society, and often about the author herself.

One chapter that I personally liked was "Men Call Cats Sluts". It was an insightful piece that connects how female cats in heat are treated with how society tends to view women. The other chapter I appreciated was "Hunger", a powerful reminder of th struggle for basic needs among both animals and humans.

I ended up crying so often throughout the book. I did end up having to skip one chapter. From my whole heart, I appreciated that the author made it very clear what the topic would be about helping me avoid it as it is a major trigger for me. Some chapters did feel like they had a slower pacing or could be a tiny bit repetitive, but as a whole, the pacing worked for me and the stories were pretty powerful.

This isn't a light or fluffy read despite the charming cover. It is a tribute to cats and animal rescuers as well as a reminder that so many beings out there, furry or otherwise, are in desperate need of care, compassion and a second chance.

This was a great memoir. Author Courtey Gustafson and her partner Tim move into Poets Square, a house they're renting in Tucson, Arizona, and soon realize that there are 30 feral cats on the property. This starts Gustafson on a journey that becomes so much bigger than just taking care of the cats on the property. That's how it starts, though, with Gustafson doing her best to feed that cats on a limited budget and worrying about their wellbeing because there are significant limits to what she can do for them at first.

These limits change as Gustafson starts posting about the cats on social media and gets donations to help feed and care for the cats and learns that she also needs to be trapping them to get them spayed and neutered. She also learns that she had "loved cats, but I had never loved cats like this: at their wildest, their most brutal, the way nature had overtaken them and left only suffering, only starvation and death."* She does eventually get the cats healthy, and many of them are adopted, but there are losses along the way. She then moves on to helping other feral cat colonies throughout the Tucson area, becoming an expert on TNR (trap-neuter-return).

Some of the chapters really stood out. For example, "Men Call Cats Sluts" explores how men sexualize and disparage female cats in heat and extend some unwelcome comments towards Gustafson, as well. Then there is the chapter about Desert Palms community, which is probably one of the most heartwarming and heartbreaking chapters. Gustafson starts caring for a cat colony there and slowly gets to know the poverty-stricken residents, and they try to help as they learn to trust her. She tries to help them in turn, providing not only supplies for the cats but also hand warmers and other supplies for the residents. And then the police come and they are all evicted. Many of them will end up homeless, if they weren't already. This book is not just about cats; it's also about broken systems in the U.S.

Gustafson often includes elements of her past, including her struggles with various types of relationships and with her mental health, and ties this into her work with the cats. It's not always seamless and sometimes works better than others, but it was also lovely to see her growth as a person as she becomes "the cat lady." Her focus on the cats allows her over time to become less focused on how she is perceived by others. She also realizes how many people are in her corner—some new, some old—which becomes apparent in contrast with people she is helping who have nothing and no one, except their cats.

The last chapter is an incomplete list of names that Gustafson has given cats over the years. It was a game changer when Tim remarked that you can name cats anything at all, even naming them after what they had eaten for dinner. Some of the names are just a blast, such as Dr. Big Butt, Monkey, Reverse Monkey (because of the coloring), and Reduced Fat Sour Cream.

I really enjoyed reading this memoir. Gustafson originally went to college and grad school to be a writer, and I hope she publishes more in the future.

*Note that this is an ARC and quotes could change when the book is officially published.

4.5 stars

An incredible memoir about cats, community, mutual aid and the systems that fail us. There's a lot that I liked about it, and I have a lot to discuss. I loved how Courtney didn't shy away from the realities she was in: her poor mental health, seeing poverty and homelessness and the impacts of the pandemic, of how it exacerbated everything. I also appreciated her self-awareness and reflections on her struggles with feelings of isolation during graduate school, as well as the nitty-gritty details of the conditions of some stray cats, including the realities of their injuries, poor health, and attempts at survival. Moreover, I really appreciated her reflections on what it means to be a woman in this society, including the anxieties of always having to perform for the male gaze and being good enough for it.

I especially appreciated her examination of how, when she asked people for donations of cat food, toys, and money for vet bills, they came flooding in. However, as soon as she started asking for items like heat blankets and first aid kits, which were intended to help humans suffering, the response was markedly different. One quote that stood out to me was how people ascribe blame and shame to people experiencing homelessness and/or addictions/mental health problems, etc., but that blame and shame is never ascribed to animals in need, therefore they automatically deserve our help, whereas people need to prove something before we extend a hand.

I felt that some threads could have been explored more, and I kept wanting her to go back and provide updates on different strays, or people that she met, such as the trash house and the hot dog man. However, overall this was an incredible read and I'm so happy I was able to receive an advanced copy.

I received an advance reader copy of Poets Square and would like to thank Courtney Gustafson, Crown Publishing, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this book ahead of its release!

Poets Square is a memoir about Gustafson’s experience moving into a house that was the site of a feral cat problem. In the midst of the pandemic, she finds herself suddenly responsible for a large feral cat colony—and can’t help herself from helping them. This book tells the story of some of these cats, how they became beloved social media stars, and how, in some way, healing can come from a bundle of fluff, toe beans, and whiskers.

I wanted to read this book primarily because I am a cat person. I was raised in a house with cats. If it’s in the feline family, it’s my favorite animal. I make a beeline for the large cats any time I go to a zoo. I will sit and spend time with a feral cat if it will let me—and if not, I’ll leave it food, just because I can’t bear to think that it might need help. I also have a soft spot for cats that need help. When I was younger, someone close to me was an animal hoarder, and the animal they chose to hoard the worst was cats. Being in close proximity to suffering animals softened me toward them.
However, I didn’t know that I already knew some of this story. Sad Boy and Lola, a bonded pair of feral cats located at Poets Square, went viral in 2021, and I—along with millions of others—followed their love story on TikTok and Instagram.

I absolutely adored this book. Gustafson’s honest and vulnerable account of how her life changed on account of a ragtag group of cats who just needed someone to look out for them really struck a chord. I found Gustafson extremely relatable, especially when she spoke about the general unrest during the pandemic in 2020 and in her discussion of toxic relationships. I also found her exploration of the concept of misogyny very interesting.

All in all, I believe Poets Square is a five-star book, and I highly recommend picking up a copy! If you’re a cat person, if you work with animals, or if you just want to read something that will stir up all your emotions, this book is a great pick for you. It releases on April 29th, so make sure that you get those last pre-orders in!

A big thank you once again to Courtney Gustafson, Crown Publishing, and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read Poets Square ahead of its release!

I’ve been following Courtney and the cats for a while now and they’ve brought me comfort in dark times. I feel so much about this book that I can’t properly express. This book is what it means to be a person and how to grow and learn, even in the hardest of times.

Like many others who have reviewed this book so far, I have been a fan of Poets Square Cats for a while now. I, along with thousands of others, became captivated by Courtney's digital storytelling and her cast of feral characters (my personal favorite being François). I've also been a foster for a cat rescue in my city before, so I felt uniquely drawn to this book, and it really resonated with me! I enjoyed Gustafson's reflections on community, mental health, and of course- cats.

I appreciated and enjoyed that this book went beyond the assumed retelling of how she found herself living in a home with over 30 cats, and tied in larger themes of isolation, class, and community care. It also refuses to shy away from the difficult parts of cat rescue and TNR- the work Gustafson and her colleagues in the industry do is emotionally draining and exhausting, and Poets Square paints a clear picture of how difficult the work can be without discouraging or speaking down to its readers.

While there were portions of the book that felt a bit redundant, overall I found it to be a compelling and entertaining read that I would recommend to anyone who's remotely interested in learning more about cat rescue or Gustafson's personal story.

3.5 round to 4 since we can't do partial ratings on here

For full transparency, I’ve been following Courtney and the cats for a few years now. I was so excited when I found out she had a book coming out, and I was really grateful to be given an arc through NetGalley. I’ve always admired the work she does for the cats and the community—she’s clearly someone who cares deeply and puts in the effort.

I went into this thinking it was going to be a cozy, heartwarming read all about cats—and I probably wasn’t expecting how heavy it would be. Each chapter sort of goes back and forth between a the cats and a part of Courtney’s personal life, whether that’s an abusive relationship, body image struggles, trying to finish her PhD, or what it was like going viral and finding some financial security through sharing the cats online.

To be honest, I don’t think I was in the right headspace for it. Things in my personal life have been really hard lately, and I was hoping for something light and fluffy that would make me feel better—not something that dug into emotional trauma and burnout and all the ways the world can be really overwhelming. That’s not necessarily a flaw with the book, it just didn’t match where I was at mentally.

There were parts I did really appreciate. My favorite section was when she talks about some of the men she encountered while rescuing animals—the entitlement and outright cruelty was honestly shocking, and she doesn’t shy away from showing how gender plays a role in the way people react to someone caring for stray cats. And I thought it was really thoughtful of her to give a heads up before the chapter where the cats don’t survive. I was not in the right headspace for that chapter so I did skip it.

That said, by the time I hit the 50% mark, it felt like it was dragging. I had to start skimming to finish. The structure jumps around a lot, which made it hard for me to stay grounded in the story, and even though I’ve followed her online for a long time, I had a really hard time connecting with her in the book. She just felt different—more guarded, maybe? Or more focused on how she was being perceived than what was actually happening.

I think this book will resonate more deeply with folks in a different emotional space than I’m in right now. I still really respect what she does—I just think I might’ve been looking for something softer than what this ended up being.

This is a lovely little set of personal essays in which Gustafson explores themes of depression, loneliness, community, despair, and hope through the feral cats she discovers and helps. I've followed Poets Square Cats on social media for quite a while, so I was already invested, but Gustafson is an effective personal writer and she stands on her own writing skills here. In each essay, she deftly weaves together the story of the cat shaping the chapter with parts of her own life story, and the end product is, though perhaps not quite as cheerful as people might be expecting, ultimately quite poignant and thoughtful. I read it in a single day.

I can’t tell you exactly when I began following Poets Square Cats on social media, but I do know it was a post featuring Sad Boy and Lola that first caught my attention. How could it not? It didn’t take long for Poets Square Cats to become one of my favorite daily stops on my social media breaks. As I fell in love with all these cats I’d never meet, I also came to appreciate Courtney’s storytelling and the heart behind it.

I've anxiously waited for this book since it was announced. I pre-ordered a print copy pretty much as soon as it was announced. I ate up every little tease Courtney posted. When I saw the book was available on NetGalley, I shot my shot for a review copy, even though I've not been the most consistent reader and reviewer lately. I was over the moon when I learned I was approved and I dove in that very night. I had no intention of reading it in one sitting. I planned to consume one or two essays at a time over several days. Well, that didn’t happen. I just couldn’t put it down.

Whether you’re a longtime follower of Poets Square Cats like myself or you just consider yourself a feline aficionado, this book should be on your TBR. Especially if you have an interest in rescue and TNR work and the people who care for community cats like Courtney does. Her writing is beautiful and thoughtful. I’ve always enjoyed her storytelling in video voiceovers and captions. This book took it to a whole new level. I especially love how she wove her story seamlessly with the story of the cats and humans she met along the way.

I have to admit, I was afraid the emotions that would come with this book might be overwhelming considering some of the cats who have been lost over the last year or so. Falling in love with cats on the internet isn’t for the weak at heart, y’all. But Courtney struck a perfect balance of emotions so it never weighed me down. Were there tears? Oh, absolutely. My emotions ran the full gamut. I also learned more about the history of the Poets Square house and its cats, as well as Courtney of course. I got angry on her behalf about some of the situations she had to deal with. The link between community cats and misogyny was particularly enlightening (and enraging, to be honest). But most of all, this book just made me thankful there are people like Courtney in this world, people who are strong enough to advocate for community cats and get them the care they need.

I follow the author on TikTok and instagram and requested this book because I loved her stories about cats. I didn’t read the synopsis and I went into this thinking it would be about cats. It is and it isn’t. This is the story of depression, isolation, and hope. Reading about the author finding herself through cat rescue and community organizing was very poignant. Seeing how building her community through acts of service helped her mental health is especially relevant given the current state of our country. This book is a reminder that we can help each other more than we give ourselves credit for.

I enjoyed this book even more than I thought I would. Courtney puts into words so many things I've felt in life, sorting through mental illness and societal expectations. Despite being a memoir largely focused on a couple years of her life, the book has a satisfying feel of a person transformed, reaping the rewards of her hard work caring for others. And the cats - oh, I love the cats. What a special book. Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

Def for cat lovers and readers of memoirs, this book was engaging but you certainly have to want to read about cats to keep pace with this one. Darling cover.