The Year of the Cat: A Cat of Strange Lands

Edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch & Dean Wesley Smith

Cats roam everywhere on the planet. Everywhere. Their breed names often betray their place of origin—or their strange origin story in some now-lost land.

This collection honors that feline diversity in odd ways as much as possible. And the strange lands that cats not only originate from, but find themselves in.

These cats prowl in a witch’s hut, an enchanted shop, post-apocalyptic cities such as Las Vegas and Seattle, as well as across an ancient land where they once ruled as gods.

Come settle in for a journey through the kitty-cat cosmos.

Includes:
“Cat Web” by Meyari McFarland
“Burning Bright” by Leigh Saunders
“The Poop Thief” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
“Cat in a Different Place” by Dean Wesley Smith
“A Silly Question” by E. Nesbit
“The Witch’s Cat” by Manly Wade Wellman
“Life, with Cats” by Annie Reed
“Night of the Hogtied Alien” by Stefon Mears
“Fur Tsunami” by Kent Patterson

The Year of the Cat: A Cat of Disdainful Looks

Edited by Kristine Kathryn Rusch & Dean Wesley Smith

Cats possess the ability to snub you faster than anything alive. They turn on the charm when it suits them, but then freeze your soul into an apologetic lump of ice with a single look.

The cats in these stories go to sea, work in the mines, foil burglars, engage in political infighting, solve crimes, and engage in dirty tricks to make their owners comply with their wishes. Not much escapes the scope of their powers.

With classic tales from Rudyard Kipling and Mark Twain, as well as new stories from some of today’s most original storytellers, this collection simply dares you to pick it up.

Includes:
“The Cat Who Walked by Himself” by Rudyard Kipling
“Midshipman, the Cat” by John Coleman Adams
“Dick Baker’s Cat” by Mark Twain
“Cat Burglary” by Jodi Lyn Nye
“An Incursion of Mice” by Kristine Kathryn Rusch
“Cat in the Air” by Dean Wesley Smith
“The Language of Cats” by Stefon Mears
“Erwin or Ralph” by Ray Vukcevich