Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World

I’ve been avoiding this book because I expected it to be saccharine. I mean, the titular cat’s full name is Dewey Readmore Books, right? But Vicki Myron’s valentine to an admittedly very special orange tabby won my heart, as it has the hearts of millions of others. And Dewey really did touch the world in the sense that his story went international in a big way. Dewey’s nearly 20 years at the Spencer, Iowa, library really did change people’s lives, especially those of children and reluctant readers. Don’t be put off by the cover and the twee title, as I was.

I loved this book. It probably helps that I love both cats and books, but even those who don't like cats can scarcely fail to be moved by this delightful true story.

Dewey was found as a tiny kitten, shivering on a cold night in a small town in Iowa called Spencer. He was adopted by the library... or, as gradually became clear, he adopted the library and its visitors. Most of all, though, he adopted Vicki Myron, the library director. She didn't have an easy life, and in many ways her relationship with Dewey kept her from going crazy.

I wasn't sure how an entire book could be written about one cat - but it works extremely well. The writing is good; pictures are painted of this small town and its problems as well as the way Dewey show more revolutionised the library, and crept into the hearts of all who knew him.

As was inevitable, the ending brought a tear to my eye. Saying goodbye to a much-loved animal is never easy, and Dewey was from all accounts a most remarkable cat. This book is a fitting tribute, which I would recommend to anyone. show less

If you love cats or libraries or both, this book is for you. I do. A small gray kitten is found in a book slot deposit, more dead than alive, in the middle of an Iowan winter. After a bath, a warm-up, and a recovery from frostbitten feet pads, it turns out the kitten is an orange tabby; he is adopted by the Spencer Free Library and after a naming contest, becomes Dewey Readmore Books. In the 1980s, things were rough in Iowa: farmers went bankrupt, then their banks followed, and towns too. Dewey, on the other hand, seemed to represent hope: he had a knack for making friends, seeming to intuitively know who needed his help most, such as the head librarian (serious health problems) or handicapped children or someone having a bad day. His show more antics are very funny for cat lovers, such as his love for catnip, rubber bands, boxes, etc. There is a great story about his trying to alert the staff to a bat loose in the library. Dewey's fame spread everywhere because he was special.

P.S. My only complaint was that like The Lord of the Rings movie, it ended too many times. show less

“A great library doesn't have to be big or beautiful. It doesn't have to have the best facilities or the most efficient staff or the most users. A great library provides. It is enmeshed in the life of a community in a way that makes it indispensable. A great library is one nobody notices because it is always there, and always has what people need.”

A non-fiction book about an adorable cat and a small town's history. The cat helps change that history and give the town's heart a bit more beat. Until they acted like asses at the end of his life and started taking that for granted (typical people!) It really comes across as an almost miraculous story when the little bundle of kitten was discovered in the mail slot like discarded trash. show more I'm sure the librarians never imagined how popular the cat would eventually become and how much it would affect the life of the librarian, Vicki.

While some of the town lore was interesting, I admit to skimming some of it. The fun antics of Dewey captivated me - I'm a cat lover myself so could relate to some of the chilling spots, box obsessions and personality quirks, but there were new cat weirdness situations that was new to me. For example, Dewey LOVES rubber bands, so much so that they had to keep them under lock and key.

The cat's adorable, and if you ever wanted to know how a cat would adapt to living in a library, here you go. Cats and books go together, right?



It's not just a long book about staring at a cat, but how Dewey changed the lives of several with their own histories. When Dewey started becoming one of the furry famous, the stories of interviews and different cat food commercials were more interesting that you'd think judging off description alone. Sweet stories overload - There's a tragically handicapped girl who smiled for the first time in years with Dewey's attention, people not wanting to disturb the cards because Dewey was laying in the box, people coming across the country in family trips to find the legendary cat.

Dewey' doesn't just dish out the sweet stuff, though - it talks about the naysayers, the political library committees (grrr), and of course how people were less accepting of the cat who had done so much for the town with revenue and aid when he gets older and less pleasingly fuzzy.

The ending is, of course, sad. I knew what was coming so that softened the blow, but I was surprised (and touched) with how much Vicki was affected for life. I won't spoil the ending with how she changes her life in a huge way, but it adds a sense of loyalty and charm to a book that was already unique and special.

Besides being a treat for cat lovers, it digs into the details of how special libraries are and how much they offer patrons, especially in small towns that struggle. Through economic woes, factory shut-downs, numerous changes, the librarian and Dewey stuck around to do what they could in the small amount of time life allotted them. After reading the stories of Dewey and all his little habits, Vicki's life and her struggles with her daughter and cancer, I came to really feel like I knew both of them in a way. That's one of the best things a non-fiction book can do for a person, be authentic enough to give that personal connection.

Read it for the cat, read it for the memories of the small town in Iowa, read it for the library ambience - it's worth a look even if it's just for the adorable pictures that grace the chapter headings. show less

I hadn't planned to read this book. I'm not a cat person. I don't dislike cats. I just come from a long line of dog owners. My mother's family always had dogs, and I can name many of their dogs who lived and died long before I was born. The only pet I've ever had was a dog. If I ever have another pet, it will be a dog. My father's family had cats on their farm. They were working cats, not pets. They lived outdoors, and kept the mouse population under control in the barn and fields. They didn't have names, but would respond to "Here, kitty!"

A friend, who also is not a cat person, read this book and gave me her copy to read. So I read it, reluctantly at first. I soon realized that this is more than a cute animal story. It's the story of a show more community, and a biography of librarian Vicki Myron. I was completely hooked when the author mentioned that one of the library employees commuted to work from Estherville. It became personal then. I've never been to Iowa, but I've heard stories about it all my life. My grandparents lived in Estherville for several years during the Depression. My uncle was born there. My grandmother often spoke of the Iowa winters, when snow would pile as high as the roof of the house, and she would have had a lot of sympathy for a small kitten left to fend for itself during a bitter Iowa winter night.

Dewey has plenty of cat tales for all of the reading cat lovers out there. It will be equally interesting to readers who enjoy non-fiction about small towns and the Midwest. Warmly recommended. show less

Why did I wait so long to read this delightful, huggable, inspiring book? Dewey touched my heart, but Vicki Myron, his 'mom', is incredible. What this small-town librarian, now retired, has been through - and survived with spirit - fills half of Dewey's book, but also turns what could have been just another soppy pet story into a truly heartfelt and honest account of life in a close midwestern community. I loved reading about Spencer, Iowa - mentally adding Dewey to my list of Iowan icons, including Captain Kirk and Bill Bryson! - and Vicki's life and work there, as much (if not more) than the anecdotes about a large ginger cat. That said, Dewey got to me right from the first pages - 'The kitten looked up at me, slowly and sadly' - and show more I was dreading the final chapters (oh, come on, everyone knows not to read books like this in company!) I had distract myself by squeezing the tip of one finger - hard! - so that I wouldn't burst into tears.

Non-cat lovers might be made of stronger stuff, but Vicki Myron tells her own story, and that of Dewey the library cat and the people of Spencer, Iowa, who fell in love with him, with openess, humour and love. The world needs more people like her, and I just wish that the library where I work was a safe environment for a cat (or indeed for the staff who work there)! show less

Dewey was a little orange ball of fur that some uncaring person deposited into a library night deposit box on a bitterly cold winter night in Spencer, Iowa. This act of cruelty did have a happy ending. As head librarian Vicki Myron shares Dewey’s story the reader also learns her story and the story of the whole town of Spencer. Dewey not only became a town favorite, but quite the world-wide celebrity in his own right.

Being pleasantly owned by three cats myself (you can read it again, but no its not a typo), this book was a good fit for me. One review I read about this book said there was one drawback to the book,

“ … anthropomorphized to a degree that can strain credulity (Dewey plays hide and seek with Myron, can read her show more thoughts, is mortified by his hair balls)—it's a love letter to libraries.”

Now really, of course cats play hide and seek, read our thoughts and are mortified by their hair balls among many, many, many other talents and idiosyncrasies. show less