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Original Title
:
Dewey: The
Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World
Author : Vicki Myron dan Brett Witter
Translator : Istiani Prayuni
Editor : Mita Yuniarti dan Anton Kurnia
Publisher : Serambi Ilmu Semesta
Publish : I, Oktober 2009
Pages : 400 pages
Author : Vicki Myron dan Brett Witter
Translator : Istiani Prayuni
Editor : Mita Yuniarti dan Anton Kurnia
Publisher : Serambi Ilmu Semesta
Publish : I, Oktober 2009
Pages : 400 pages
REVIEW
Dewey's origins
were questionable as was his introduction to library director Vicki Myron.
January 18, 1988 was a frigid Monday in Spencer. "It was a killing freeze,
the kind that made it almost painful to breathe." When Vicki arrived at
the library that morning her assistant told her she had heard a noise coming
from a metal slot, the library's after-hours drop box behind the building.
Soon, they both heard the noise and thought it was an animal. The opening of
the box was only a few inches wide, so whatever it was had to be very small.
Being metal the box was even colder than it was outside, and there in a corner
of the box was a tiny kitten.
It was the most pitiful thing she had ever seen, so thin she could see every rib, and she could feel its heart beating, its lungs pumping. "The poor kitten was so weak it could barely hold up its head, and it was shaking uncontrollably. It opened its mouth, but the sound which came two seconds later, was weak and ragged." But one look into his big eyes and she was Dewey's and he was hers.
It was the most pitiful thing she had ever seen, so thin she could see every rib, and she could feel its heart beating, its lungs pumping. "The poor kitten was so weak it could barely hold up its head, and it was shaking uncontrollably. It opened its mouth, but the sound which came two seconds later, was weak and ragged." But one look into his big eyes and she was Dewey's and he was hers.
Dewey was not
the only one who had endured hardship - Vicki was a single mom who had lost the
family farm and survived an abusive husband. The people of Spencer were going
through tough times during the farm crisis of that time. Depression, ennui
seemed to be everywhere.
Nonetheless,
Vicki was determined to capture the interest of those who came to the small
library and hopefully make them a little happier. With the help of Dewey she
did that and more. For 19 years he returned the affection of the townspeople
twofold, amusing them, enchanting them, rubbing against many hands in gratitude
for their caresses.
What difference
can one small animal make? Dewey's story spread across state lines and even
around the world. In 2003 Japanese Public Television filmed Dewey, and his
obituary ran in well over 200 newspapers.
His story will warm your hearts, make
you laugh and cry.
Rating : 4.5 of
5
