Yeoman's in the Fork Blog

Pondering the closing of many independent bookstores across the country initiated a thought within me concerning the unofficial mascot of many of these beloved havens for the written word. I am referring to, of course, the cat. The more independent pet of man the cat seems to reign from on high in an aloof manner. Yet, she will on occasion visit her human companion in a display of great affection, only so briefly, before once more she is perched upon high looking down on all passerby's. This is never truer than in a bookstore. They seem to be a moving fixture darting this way and that across the store. Sometimes they are simply perched on a high shelf where they can escape human hand or sitting just beside the step stool waiting for someone to stop close by so they might have the chance to show their affection.

I have heard rumors that there is a high concentration of cats in the bookstores of New England. I have also heard tell that the great book shops in San Francisco are a haven for the beloved feline. What I have not been able to decode is why exactly is it that the cat seems to be associated with our storehouse of knowledge, our key to understanding, our gateway of wisdom. Perhaps, they are useful to keep pests from destroying the only real talisman mankind has ever created. Or perhaps there is a sort of sacred love and connection that exists between those that love books and love the company of our detached, yet ironically, attentive friends.