The Rabbi’s Cat

    (Pantheon, 2005)
™ and ©205 Pantheon Books

“I didn’t eat the parrot!” exclaimed the cat… an obvious lie, since he couldn’t speak until the bird who could disappeared. From this fantastical beginning comes an engaging story of faith, religious tradition, and family values, and the gradual acceptance of differing interpretations of each.

Set in 1930s Algiers, where Jews, Arabs, and Christians were able to co-exist in relative peace, this is the story of an aging Rabbi, his nubile daughter, and their mischievous but well-meaning cat. When he gains the ability to speak, the cat insists on learning the Torah, but another rabbi insists that cats can’t be Jewish—the cat, of course, has to prove him wrong, much to his master’s secret delight.

Probably best known in America for his Little Vampire children’s books, creator Sfar presents a tale that is dramatic, humorous, intelligent and irreverent, and filled with endearingly human characters.

— Jerry Smith
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The Rabbi’s Cat #1 Hardcover

16-Aug-2005
Cover Price: $21.95
1 copy available for $16.00
Hardcover Edition by Joann Sfar; 142 pages; And Le Chat du Rabbin, 3. L’Exode; Le Chat du Rabbin, 2. Le Malka des Lions; Originally published in France in three volumes as Le Chat du Rabbin, 1 La Bar Mitsva Joann SfarJoann Sfar