I have a t-shirt with a picture of a cat lounging amidst stacks of books and it says, “Books and Cats…Life is Good.”
As a writer, it just seems natural to have cats wandering in and out of my office, lounging on my desk, or curling up on my lap while I work. And for many readers, there’s nothing as relaxing and enjoyable as curling up with a book with a cat nearby. Right?
Did you know that some reading programs through shelters and in schools and libraries are pairing kids with cats as therapy for timid or slow readers? In Berks County, PA, elementary school kids are encouraged to participate in a program called Book Buddies, where children sit quietly and read to various local shelter cats. It helps the animals and it helps the children. https://www.berksarl.org/programs/book-buddies/
The Green Hill Humane Society in Eugene Oregon has a similar program, as does the 
SPCA in Raleigh, North Carolina, PAWS for People program in Newark, DE, and others.
In Book 6 of the Klepto Cat Mystery series, Celebrity Cat Caper, Rags (the klepto cat) participates in a children’s therapy reading program. Let’s hope that the programs you encounter don’t involve the suspense and mystery that Rags, the klepto cat, musters up.
