A Cat Called Birmingham (Hardcover)

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Review
'Charming' -- Free Press 'Laughed out loud several times as did colleagues who I passed it on to ... The perfect pick-me-up on a dull day ... I read this with tears of laughter rolling down my cheeks.' -- Ella Reid, My Weekly 'Anyone who loves or knows cats will be able to relate to Chris Pascoe's hilarious and affectionate account of the hapless Birmingham's adventures. I literally cried with laughter.' -- Jo Rothery (Editor, Cat World Magazine) 'P.G.Wodehouse had his pekes, A.A. Milne his teddy bear - Chris Pascoe has his cat. A CAT CALLED BIRMINGHAM is the debut of an original comic voice - wry, assured, sometimes whimsical and sometimes surreal but throughout refreshingly uncynical. As a result of reading his book, I have taken to laughing at cats in the street, much to the puzzlement of the owners. We all know that the funniest bits of You've Been Framed are the animal slapstick - well, this book is all that and more besides: Pascoe relates the comic misadventures of his pet with unflagging energy and relish, underpinned with an affection that never becomes mawkish. He has the ability to fashion fine humour form the minutiae of everyday life - which is the best kind of humour. I have news for anyone who has laughed at the antics of an animal but not bothered to write it down. Someone has - Chris Pascoe.' -- Julian Dutton, writer, Alistair MacGowan Show 'This eccentric memoir has very little to do with the West Midland's favourite conurbation. Instead, it's the rather charming story of Mr Pascoe's own pet, a madcap moggy who can't help but cause mayhem ... It belongs to that very traditional genre - old-fashioned romance. It's just that instead of the usual boy-meets-girl hokum, we have the love that dare not speak its name. The passion between a man and his cat' -- Birmingham Sunday Mercury 'Charming tale is the cat's whiskers ... highly amusing' -- Slough and South Bucks Express '... this is one cool cat. A 'tail' of the most divine intervention.' -- Good Book Guide 'An original comic voice - wry, assured, sometimes whimsical and sometimes surreal but throughout refreshingly uncynical ... the best kind of humour' -- Julian Dutton, writer, Alistair MacGowan Show 'Charming' -- Free Press 'This eccentric memoir has very little to do with the West Midland's favourite conurbation. Instead, it's the rather charming story of Mr Pascoe's own pet, a madcap moggy who can't help but cause mayhem ... ' -- Birmingham Sunday Mercury 'I read this with tears of laughter rolling down my cheeks.' -- Eila Reid, Editor of My Weekly 'Anyone who loves or knows cats will be able to relate to Chris Pascoe's hilarious and affectionate account of the hapless Birmingham's adventures. I literally cried with laughter.' -- Jo Rothery (Editor, Cat World Magazine)

Eila Reid, Editor of My Weekly
'I read this with tears of laughter rolling down my cheeks.'

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19 Reviews 5 star:  (19) 4 star:    (0) 3 star:    (0) 2 star:    (0) 1 star:    (0)           Average Customer Review 5.0 out of 5 stars (19 customer reviews)		Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
Most Helpful Customer Reviews   47 of 48 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Cat Called Birmingham, 17 Jan 2005 By  "johngrr2" - See all my reviews I don't often bother writing reviews for books but this one was funny, very funny, and I reckon it deserves one. I'd heard the author on the radio and he made me laugh, so when I saw the book in a shop the same day I glanced at it out of interest and started laughing straight away. I don't usually go for 'cat books' but this isn't exactly that. It's all about a cat yes, but it's more the series of crazy situations the cat gets himself and everyone else into. He's a near on useless cat, as clumsy and thick as two short planks, he can't even beat a sparrow in a one on one. But as the book progresses you get to really like him, as you do the people in this book. Pascoe is a witty writer. He relates each improbable episode so well that you start laughing well before 'the punchline' and even when you guess what's coming, you still laugh until it hurts. When a lot of the cat's maniac actions directly effect him (as in my favourite chapter when the pair of them wreck a whole room between them) Pascoe's resigned irony is hilarious. Each chapter contains a different story, all connected but running like a series of comedy episodes. I also found particularly amusing the three short fantasy scenario chapters, particularly one entitled crackpot theories which is a cleverly daft look at how a future evolved cat civilisation would work. The cat himself, Birmingham is remarkable. His falls, accidents, battles, fire and water antics and sheer bad luck make him one of the best comedy characters to emerge for quite some time. As mentioned, though, it's not all cat. Pascoe pokes a great deal of fun at his own escapades, and exceptionally funny here amongst others was a drunken brawl with a homicidal cat. My wife insisted on reading it after me just to see what I was making all the guffaws and laughing grunts about and she made exactly the same noises.It's difficult to catagorise this book exactly as it's so unusual. It's both a light hearted cat book and a comedy of errors, the humour is all of slapstick, observational, laugh out loud, embarrassing situations and ironic asides. In short it's hilarious, well written and a lot of fun and I'd recommend it to anyone who likes a laugh. Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   21 of 21 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars So funny!, 22 Jun 2005 By  "debbieannjones" - See all my reviews Birmingham made me laugh and laugh. I love cats and he is brilliant. Every chapter had me in stitches. Its so weird how I got this book - I was sitting on the beach in Portugal and a girl kept laughing out so loud. She read lots of funny lines out to her friend and she kept laughing too, and so did I! I ended up going over to ask what book she had and I thought I've got to read this. I bought it the day I got home and I'm so glad I did because it totally cheered me of my post holiday blues. So thanks girl on the beach for a very convincing review, and thanks Birmingham too you little loony!! Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)   16 of 16 people found the following review helpful: 5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic, 18 Nov 2005 By  "denisejoyce" - See all my reviews This has to be the funniest book I have ever had the pleasure of reading. I had tears of laughter running down my face from start to finish at the antics of Birmingham, so much so that my husband thought I'd gone mad! I adore cats and Chris Pascoe describes Birmingham's "mishaps" so well. I can't wait for more! Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this) Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review › See all 19 customer reviews...		Ad feedback   Most Recent Customer Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars a cat called birmingham a bit slow at the beginning but once got into the story i laughed, cried and smiled at the antics and mishaps this cat got into loved it so now on second book of birminghams tale Published 4 days ago by P. Burnett 5.0 out of 5 stars Laugh til I Cried !!! I made big mistake trying to read this book on a flight to Spain.. Within minutes I laughing hysterically,, totally unable to explain to by embarrassed husband exactly what... Read more Published 1 month ago by Mrs. Jill Richardson 5.0 out of 5 stars A Cat called Birmingham What a fabulous book - I haven't laughed so much in years! As a cat owner I can really relate to some of the antics that Birmingham gets himself into, and others? Read more Published 3 months ago by Mrs. S. Dawes 5.0 out of 5 stars So funny you can't help laughing out loud! I just loved this book the moment I started reading and couldn't put it down. I ended up laughing out loud at points, which can be rather disconcerting for other people if you... Read more Published 8 months ago by J. Jeffery 5.0 out of 5 stars The world needs more books like this! Prepare yourself for aching ribs as you laugh until you cry. Hilarity hits you on every page! Published 11 months ago by Mrs. L. J. Biggs 5.0 out of 5 stars A laugh out loud page turner! I absolutely loved this book and would recommend it to anyone! Brum is so much like my own cat Brinx it is a comfort to know that I am not the only one that has a cat like this... Read more Published 15 months ago by Stephen Rickard 5.0 out of 5 stars Just brilliant! Daughter bought me this for Christmas - on the strength of Amazon reviews - as my Christmas 'cat book'. I spent hours crying with laughter! Read more Published 17 months ago by H. MCADAM 5.0 out of 5 stars I think I've broken some ribs... I hardly ever write reviews, but this is most definitely worth it. I have NEVER read such a funny book! Read more Published 18 months ago by N. Sykes 5.0 out of 5 stars Laugh out loud I pity the people who sat next to me on the aeroplane flying out to Canada. I had been lent the book "A Cat Called Birmingham" by a friend and laughed till I cried all the way to... Read more Published 20 months ago by K. Wood 5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliantly written and very very funny My title says it all really. As the last reviewer said, I ordered this book based on the great reviews here, as I like cats but I'm not a cat-person as such. Read more Published 24 months ago by Pinter Search Customer Reviews Only search this product's reviews › See all 19 customer reviews...

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