From Publishers Weekly
Like other recent books in Braun's best-selling series that began with The Cat Who Could Read Backwards (1966), this loosely plotted novel, the 26th to feature Siamese cats Koko and Yum Yum and Moose County journalist Jim Qwilleran, isn't quite up to the standard of earlier entries, but it still provides plenty of escapist fun. The shooting death of a well-dressed gentleman in the woods on Qwill's property is nearly neglected in the fuss and excitement engendered by the neighboring town of Brrr's bicentennial. On the trail of a story for the celebration, Qwill interviews Edythe Carroll, a wealthy widow who has retired to Ittibittiwassee Estates from the magnificent mansion she plans to leave to her granddaughter, Lish (short for Alicia). Little does Edythe know that Lish and her boyfriend, Lush, have already trashed the place. After dozing off in his gazebo after a busy day, Qwill is startled awake by strange noises, including some coming from Koko. Enter an entire family of wild turkeys. If this all sounds like a bit of a ramble, it's quite in keeping with the story, which wanders pleasantly around Moose County, surveying its eccentric citizens as they go about their idiosyncratic business. In spite of two murders and a pair of villains, the tale is as cozy as an hour spent cuddling your favorite cat.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From AudioFile
This is the twenty-sixth in the popular Cat Who series, featuring a psychic Siamese cat and a rustic but dapper newspaper columnist. In this latest story little attention is paid to the art of crime detection. No one cares about a couple of bodies in the woods. The real story is about opening a new bookstore, planning for a bicentennial, chasing wild turkeys, and producing a play about a devastating storm of 1913. What keeps the series popular are the local characters, the cats, and protagonist Quill, who is lively, wise, and funny. George Guidall does his usual superb job of bringing alive Quill, the good citizens of Mooseville, and even the cats. (His portrayal of Koko's yowls is worth listening for.) These episodes of life in the North have much of the same bucolic humor we enjoy in "The News from Lake Wobegon." D.L.G. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

From Booklist
For fans of this series featuring Siamese cats Yum Yum and the clairvoyant Koko, there are no surprises in the twenty-sixth installment. The felines' owner, James "Qwill" Qwilleran, is just as rich and listener friendly as ever, his place of residence, Pickax, in Moose County, is still 400 miles north of anywhere else, and people are still murdered with astounding regularity, though Koko, who can sense a homicide a mile a way, is never surprised. Those who love the series appreciate Braun's attention to detail as she describes Pickax and the surrounding area, which while magnificently rural also boasts many fine dining establishments, places to buy the New York Times, and an abundance of cabs, as well as a limousine service. The citizenry, laconic, timidly happy, or in the case of Qwill's librarian lady friend, stupefyingly boring, would feel right at home in Lake Woebegone. The several murders committed here are really beside the point--in fact, except for the cat screeching you might miss them entirely. More attention is paid to Qwill's radio reenactment of the Great Blizzard of 1913 (the audience, of course, must pretend radio existed in 1913), which takes up a number of the book's pages. Loyal readers find the series' inconsistencies and idiosyncrasies charming, but even they, at times, must wish for less of Qwill and more of the cats. Ilene Cooper
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

FROM OUR EDITORS

The Barnes & Noble Review
Books, birds, and fine food are three of James Qwilleran's favorite things, and those interests are shared by his Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum. In addition to these benign hobbies, Koko and Qwill also share a fascination with facts -- the stranger the better. This time Koko's remarkable instinct for crime is alerted to a series of seemingly unrelated execution-style deaths, but communicating his concerns to his journalist friend Qwill proves nearly as complicated as learning to talk to the wild turkeys who've recently returned to Moose County and begun visiting Qwill's gazebo. And Qwill is putting together his own pieces of the perilous puzzle as he helps make plans for Pickax's new bookstore, becomes embroiled in a private and public property dispute, meets the deadlines for his popular "Qwill Pen" newspaper column, cares for his beloved cats, and crafts his second spectacular one-man show highlighting the history of his adopted home. This installment in Lilian Jackson Braun's Cat Who￯﾿ﾽ mystery series is another feast of investigative fun. Sue Stone

FROM THE PUBLISHER

"The good people of Moose County are in a fever of excitement. Not only is the gala groundbreaking for the new Pickax bookstore about to take place, but the town of Brrr is preparing to celebrate its bicentennial, and columnist James Qwilleran has been roped in to help with the festivities." The groundbreaking, however, is marred by the discovery of a man's body nearby - on Qwill's own property, no less. Could it be the work of the killer who used the same MO in northern Michigan? And why does Qwill's sage Siamese, Koko, keep insisting that his human read him a book that Qwill can't stand? Then there's the sudden appearance of what seem to be wild turkeys, which haven't been present in Moose County for thirty years. Could Qwill be hallucinating?

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Like other recent books in Braun's best-selling series that began with The Cat Who Could Read Backwards (1966), this loosely plotted novel, the 26th to feature Siamese cats Koko and Yum Yum and Moose County journalist Jim Qwilleran, isn't quite up to the standard of earlier entries, but it still provides plenty of escapist fun. The shooting death of a well-dressed gentleman in the woods on Qwill's property is nearly neglected in the fuss and excitement engendered by the neighboring town of Brrr's bicentennial. On the trail of a story for the celebration, Qwill interviews Edythe Carroll, a wealthy widow who has retired to Ittibittiwassee Estates from the magnificent mansion she plans to leave to her granddaughter, Lish (short for Alicia). Little does Edythe know that Lish and her boyfriend, Lush, have already trashed the place. After dozing off in his gazebo after a busy day, Qwill is startled awake by strange noises, including some coming from Koko. Enter an entire family of wild turkeys. If this all sounds like a bit of a ramble, it's quite in keeping with the story, which wanders pleasantly around Moose County, surveying its eccentric citizens as they go about their idiosyncratic business. In spite of two murders and a pair of villains, the tale is as cozy as an hour spent cuddling your favorite cat. Agent, Blanche C. Gregory. (Jan. 5) FYI: Braun is also the author of The Private Life of the Cat Who (2003) and two other story collections in the series. Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal

Braun's "Cat Who" novels are growing shorter and their mystery plots are growing ever thinner. Nevertheless, the books continue to entertain. In this 26th in the series, the greatest mystery is what the mystery is. A murder occurs on Jim Qwilleran's property, but no one knows the victim, and next to no one-aside from the psychic Siamese cat Koko-seems to care. Moreover, the case virtually solves itself. No matter. The true charm of these works is the marvelous sense of place that Braun evokes. The real story revolves around Qwilleran's involvement in the bicentennial being celebrated by Pickax's neighboring town of Brrr. As always, George Guidall's warm reading brings the characters alive and ensures that Braun's devoted listeners will welcome another visit to Moose County. No point in recommending this; if your library has "Cat Who" devotees, you must acquire it.-Kent Rasmussen, Thousand Oaks, CA Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

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