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Paul Gallico
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The Abandoned (New York Review Children's Collection) Paperback – May 10, 2022

by Paul Gallico (Author)
4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 237 ratings
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London hasn’t been kind to Peter, a lonely boy whose parents are always out at parties, and though Peter would love to have a cat for company, his nanny won’t hear of it. One day, Peter sees a striped kitten in the park across from his house. Crossing the road on his way to the tabby, he is struck by a truck.

Everything is different when Peter comes to: He has fur, whiskers, and claws; he has become a cat himself! But London isn’t any kinder to cats than it is to children. Jennie, a savvy stray who takes charge of Peter, knows that all too well. Jennie schools young Peter in the ways of cats, including how to sniff out a nice napping spot, the proper way to dine on mouse, and the single most important tactic a cat can learn: “When in doubt, wash.” Jennie and Peter will face many challenges—and not all of them are from the dangerous outside world—in their struggle to find a place that is truly home.
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Previous page
  1. Reading age
    9 - 12 years
  2. Part of series
    New York Review Children's Collection
  3. Print length
    320 pages
  4. Language
    English
  5. Grade level
    4 - 7
  6. Dimensions
    5.23 x 0.67 x 7.61 inches
  7. Publisher
    NYRB Kids
  8. Publication date
    May 10, 2022
  9. ISBN-10
    1681376679
  10. ISBN-13
    978-1681376677
  11. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Unalloyed delight.... You should be warned that if you hate cats you’d better not read this story, for it will so entertain you and instruct you in the ways of cats that your interest and liking will be aroused in spite of you.” —Chicago Daily Tribune

“When I was 9 years old I plucked The Abandoned from my school library’s dusty shelves and fell in love with literature. The adventures that unfolded, reminiscent of The Wind in the Willows and Peter Pan, captured me so thoroughly I knew writing was part of my destiny.” —Naomi Serviss, Newsday

“This is one of Gallico's best works, making a perfect companion to his more famous 'Thomasina' and telling of a boy transposed into the body of a cat by accident. His life as a cat involves many hard lessons from companion Jennie in this excellent, sensitive story.”  —Midwest Book Review
 
“Unalloyed delight.  . . .You should be warned that if you hate cats you’d better not read this story, for it will entertain you and instruct you in the ways of cats, that your interest  and liking will be aroused in spite of you.”  —Chicago Sunday Tribune
 
“In portraying Jennie, a London tabby, Paul Gallico has given us not only a cat’s-eye-view of the cosmos, but also a cat immortal.” —Saturday Review of Literature
 
“Poetry and fantasy so skillfully impregnate the story that a parable of haunting wistfulness emerges.” —Christian Science Monitor

About the Author

Paul Gallico (1897–1976) was a popular and prolific sports columnist, screenwriter, and author of books for adults and children. He was born in New York City to an Italian immigrant musician father and a mother who had studied to be a singer, and paid his way through Columbia University by tutoring children and working as a longshoreman. He began his career at the New York Daily News, where he soon became famous for his adventures with star athletes of the day. In 1937 he published the essay “Farewell to Sport” and turned to fiction, publishing stories in publications like Cosmopolitan, The Saturday Evening Post, and The New Yorker. Among his forty-one books are the novella The Snow Goose (1941); Manxmouse (1968, often cited by J.K. Rowling as one of her favorite books); Mrs. ’Arris Goes to Paris (1958) and its four sequels; and The Poseidon Adventure (1969), the basis for the hugely successful 1972 film. From 1950 until his death Gallico lived outside of the United States, mostly in England, Antibes, and Monaco.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ NYRB Kids (May 10, 2022)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1681376679
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1681376677
  • Reading age ‏ : ‎ 9 - 12 years
  • Grade level ‏ : ‎ 4 - 7
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 11.4 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.23 x 0.67 x 7.61 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.8 4.8 out of 5 stars 237 ratings

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Paul Gallico

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Customer reviews

4.8 out of 5 stars
4.8 out of 5
237 global ratings
How could I have not read this book as a child?
5 Stars
How could I have not read this book as a child?
Wow, Paul Gallico is a wonderful author. As a child I very much remember his other story about cats, Thomasina, or perhaps better known to GenX'ers from the Disney movie, The Three Lives of Thomasina. For some reason I missed reading The Abandoned (or Jennie, it is the same novel).The Abandoned tells the story of Peter, a lonely boy in postwar London who loves cats but isn't allowed to have one. After he gets hit by a lorry in the street while trying to save a kitty, he finds himself transformed into a cat. His fright is terrible and the story paints a very realistic cat's point of view about being a small fearful animal abandoned in the big city. But Peter soon meets Jennie, a streetwise semi-feral cat who takes him in and teaches Peter 'how to be a cat' and the two have many adventures.The Abandoned is a beautiful, complicated, sad and yet uplifting novel. As an adult, this totally made me cry, and not just because of the cats but because it touches a very deep ache to be wanted and to be loved and cared for: to be a mother, a friend, or to be lonely. Gallico never insults the intelligence of the children he wrote for, and indeed young or adult, you will find yourself questioning many things about our human interactions with animals and the way we humans treat them. Younger children may not quite understand all of the behavior and psychology that underly the entire story, and that is ok, because it can present a questioning of self, love, respect and acceptance and conversation about what it means to simply be kind and respectful to all living creatures. Believe me, this is one of THOSE books that bear re-reading at several different ages, and each time you will see something missed or you understand better.I could see this being made into an animated film, though I wonder if the empathy and emotions would accurately be conveyed in film medium? I seem to recall that happening with Thomasina somewhat, but modern animation has advanced to a point that deep and emotional children's stories can be depicted much better than previous if done with care and attention. This is definitely a story begging to come to life. I will leave you with this."Nanny came back and placed the cat on his bed. She crawled at once on to Peter's chest, placed her head beneath his chin, as so many cats were to do all through Peter's later life, as though they knew and understood him at once as one of their own."
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Top reviews from the United States

Thomas H. Baker
5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful new edition of an old favorite
Reviewed in the United States on December 22, 2013
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This novel has been a personal favorite of mine for many decades. Having been a "cat person" since childhood, I cherish a beautifully-told story about cats that shows uncanny, indeed brilliant, insight into feline psychology and behavior, a story which is at the same time an adventure story and a love story. What was not so clear to me forty years ago is that it shows equal insight into human psychology and shines its warm light well beyond the feline world. How Gallico managed to combine the two sets of insights---seemingly effortlessly---into a completely coherent and emotionally rich story about a real and believable human child and a real and believable cat is the crowning wonder. Not only that: he managed it in simple-seeming and beautiful prose, making it perfectly appropriate for children. As I approach my "second childhood" I find that in fact I have had many childhoods, and that this novel has nourished me in all of them. It is a tale for every age.
11 people found this helpful
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Sunny
5.0 out of 5 stars Even As An Adult, I Could Not Put This Story Down!
Reviewed in the United States on December 1, 2017
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This is truly a beautifully written, charming, sensitive story about a little boy who appears to be unloved by his parents, sternly disciplined by his nanny, and alone, longing for a cat companion. It is refreshing to read about a boy and his yearning for a cat, rather than a dog. When he finds himself mysteriously turned into a cat and actually abandoned by the family he loved as a human, he is looked after by another cat who has suffered the same fate--abandonment by a loved family. The richness of story-telling, the range of emotional connection to the cats, and the education of cats' worlds facinate from beginning to end. Although this is a children's book, I, as an adult, could not put it down. This is the best read I've had in many lives (at least nine!). I highly recommend this to all parents of animal-loving children!
19 people found this helpful
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Lorenzo
5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful novel, whether for a teen reader or an adult.
Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2013
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I am looking forward to a re-read of this interesting and fun cat tale (tail?), a book that has been out of print for nearly a decade. Now, thank heaven, it's available again, and so I can anticipate the pleasure of a re-read, as well as the pleasure of giving the book as a gift to dear friends.

This is a story of a small boy who gets turned into a cat, and then must quickly learn the lessons needed for feline survival in a rough, tough, post-WW II bombed-out London and Glasgow. Luckily, our protagonist has a coach in his trials for survival in the form of a she-cat, Jenny ('Jenny' was the original UK title of the book, by the way), and along the way we all learn lessons about survival, both feline and human.

Paul Gallico was a reporter in Nazi-Germany in the '30s and knows how to state a thought with clarity and immediacy. He was a prolific and eclectic writer - powerful adventure tales like 'Poseidon Down' made his success - and with this seemingly trivial 'cat story' one might get the impression that he 'throttled back'. But Gallico is a supreme observer of cats and humans, and in this surprising novel he is at the top of his game. I've read it twice (the first time out loud to my wife, who was so frightened by an unexpected twist in the story that she refused to read on), and I love the book. Love it enough for a re-read.

It's a book for cat lovers. It's a book for animal lovers...yeah, sure. But it's a book for observers of the cat and human condition, for thinkers, and especially those who appreciate damn good writing.
12 people found this helpful
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Christopher Junker
4.0 out of 5 stars A good visit to children's literature
Reviewed in the United States on October 25, 2017
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A book in the children's classics series from the NYRB, the tale of a boy transformed into a cat after being hit by a car as he ran into the street to rescue a cat. More child's Metamorphosis than Wind in the Willows, he learns to live as a cat in the feline Land of Oz that is London from the cat's eye view. No tapping of ruby slippers here but everything works out in the end. If you like reading a good children's book now and again, this is an enjoyable one.
7 people found this helpful
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esdras
5.0 out of 5 stars Wise, wonderful, and deeply moving
Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2019
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Sometimess you look again at a book you really liked a long time ago, and it’s hard to see why you liked it so much. Your perspective has changed, your critical faculties have matured, you’re concerned with current events, etc.; you’ve put away childish things. I’m not sure when I first read The Abandoned, but I know I read it aloud in a car as we drove home from Disneyland to Echo Park. When we arrived in the driveway, nobody wanted to move until I had finished the book. I was 30, my daughter was 8, my son was 4, and my friend was 45. Now it’s 50 years later (all numbers approximate) and I just read it again. It’s a goddam wonderful book. If you are so unfortunate as to not have read it, you should rectify that immediately.
24 people found this helpful
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Susanna D
5.0 out of 5 stars Just as wonderful 45 years later
Reviewed in the United States on June 30, 2022
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I loved this book as a child. I remembered it when visiting with my sister and ordered the kindle version. Even though I had difficulty downloading it onto my device, I was able to pour through it on my phone. It was still as wonderful a tale as I remembered it to be. The writing powerful enough to draw tears. I loved it all over again!
3 people found this helpful
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richard davis
5.0 out of 5 stars A wonderful story.
Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2021
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I read The Abandoned when I was young, and bought it this time to give to my grandson, who is a great reader. I read it again before I mailed it to him, and it was as good now that I am old as it was when I was young.
5 people found this helpful
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Running Rampant
5.0 out of 5 stars English teacher grandma taught from it and got me hooked on it, too
Reviewed in the United States on March 13, 2017
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My late grandma was an English teacher for decades. This is one of the books she had her classes read and she got me hooked on it while I was growing up. I read it more than once while visiting my grandparents' house each summer and always loved it. Anyone who loves cats and appreciates their quirky personalities will appreciate what Paul Gallico did with these characters. The story is just delightful, with Peter having to learn the rudiments of catdom. His lovely Jenny teaches him everything. I still own the yellowed, tattered paperback from which my grandma taught. It has her underlines and notes in the margins. It's priceless. :)
9 people found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

Antony L.
5.0 out of 5 stars Every youngster should read
Reviewed in Canada on April 5, 2024
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The definitive source to the understanding of cats!
Written in an age prior to computer technology.
A literary masterpiece of adventure, imagination and a colourful example of loyalty and friendship.
This will be the best gift i could ever give a young person.....or older for that matter !
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Fred
5.0 out of 5 stars Thanks!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 27, 2023
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Nancy Chisholm
5.0 out of 5 stars A classic take for all ages.
Reviewed in Canada on January 1, 2023
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Paul Gallico is one of the authors that lives on my bookshelf and gets reread. This is a gift for one of my grandchildren. When I was 9 my parents gave me a collection of three novellas and "The Snow Goose" brought me to tears. His storytelling stands the test of time, a great tale is one you discover new nuances and perspectives each time you read it. This tale of Peter and his Jennie Baldrin is a treasure (whether you are 10 or 62).
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