Dewey the Library Cat Gets His Own Memoir

Posted on April 9, 2007

Librarian Vicki Myron has been awarded a $1.2 million book contract to write about Dewey, the library cat that charmed everyone who met him. Dewey was dropped into the book return slot when he was a wee kitten and the librarians adopted him. Since then, he has become the most famous library cat in the world. Named after the Dewey Decimal System, his full name was Dewey Readmore Books. Dewey recently passed away after nineteen blissful years.

The New York Times reports that the manuscript was acquired by Grand Central Publishing for $1.25 million. The Times says they are hoping for a female equivalent of Marley & Me by John Grogan.

Dewey, which was sold on the basis of a 45-page proposal with about 10 photos of the fluffy orange cat, will tell the story of how the kitten was found in the late-night book drop of the public library in Spencer, a town in the northwest part of the state, and adopted by Ms. Myron and the other librarians. Slowly, over the course of his 19-year life, Dewey became a town mascot who lifted the spirits of residents hit hard by the 1980s farming crisis. In the process he attracted the attention of tourists, cat-calendar makers and filmmakers. He appeared in Puss in Books: Adventures of the Library Cat, a 1997 documentary, and another film made by Japanese documentarians. When he died last November, his obituary ran in more than 250 publications, including USA Today and The Washington Post.
Jamie Raab, publisher of Grand Central (formerly called Warner Books), said she was hooked on Dewey just two pages into the proposal, which she read last Thursday. Ms. Raab said she was so excited by the proposal that she got out of bed at midnight to send e-mail to Ms. Kosztolnyik, saying, "Let's buy this book."

We think Jamie is right on target -- we know we'll read it. Books, cats, orphans, heartwarming animal hijinks: what's not to love?

Update: The book is here. The name is Dewey the Library Cat: A True Story. It is written by Vicki Myron with Bret Witter. It is available for purchase on Amazon.com.