Simona: A Celebration of the SPCA by Chad Norman

Chad Norman's cycle of 50 poems focused on his cat, Simona, is a delight for cat lovers. He adopted the cat from a S.P.C.A refuge where she had found shelter after being traumatized by the violent kicks from the boots of a human brute. Cat and poet looked each other in the eye and knew instantly that they would share their lives in the future. The cat became part of Norman's family.

Norman introduces the reader to the world of cats. We com to see and feel the world through Simona's senses and emotions. This is where Norman's poems reach beyond the pleasure of enjoying a pet: we are lead to realize that cats, like humans, have feelings, fears, hopes and affections. This is an important perspective in a world dominated by a creature, homo sapiens sapiens no less, that considers itself superior to the other animals on Earth and looks down on them, acknowledging them only as forms of entertainment or as food, or else as a nuisance.

'Simona' teaches us that until we accept our part in nature's global web we are not fit to be stewards of life on our planet. All creatures are equal in the adventure of living, dependent on each other, and therefore must be treated with respect and compassion. Norman's poems embody this lesson not in arguments but by letting us experience the world through the senses and mind of a cat.