Book Review: Prancie's Prayer by Ellen J. Pilch. A Purrfect Gift For Cat Lovers
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Prancie’s Prayer is the heartwarming tale of how one of Ellen’s cats found her way into Ellen’s home and her family’s hearts. Poor Pumpkin (as she was known before becoming one of Ellen’s clowder) found herself alone and cold on a winter’s morning after being dumped in the woods by her former family. Pumpkin’s only transgression was knocking things off of dressers and she couldn’t understand why she would be abandoned for doing such a small thing.
Lonely and hungry, Pumpkin takes off down a country road looking for food and companionship. She happened upon the Pilch household where they were putting up Christmas decorations, including a nativity scene. Pumpkin curled up inside the manger, but the winter’s night was cold, and she was still hungry. Taking a chance, she meowed at Ellen’s back door, and when it was opened she ran right in.
Pumpkin then was renamed Prancie because she was so happy, she was prancing around in a circle. She quickly became a part of the family, bonding with Ellen’s husband, and never had to worry about being outside in the cold again.
Ellen was inspired to write Prancie’s story because she thought it was sweet that she showed up in their nativity. Ellen used to teach Catechism and says the book has a religious theme but can still be enjoyed by anyone. When Prancie arrived at Ellen’s door in 2005, the weather was below zero and her ears were frostbitten and the tips fell off, “but I didn’t want to scare kids by adding that to the book.”
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| Photo courtesy Ellen Pilch |
Prancie has “definitely enhanced our lives and given us so much joy”, says Ellen. “My hubby always liked cats, but Prancie really bonded with him and is his favorite. She is very sweet yet gets her point across by knocking things off shelves.”
Ellen is one of the sweetest,most thoughtful cat ladies I have met through blogging. She creates a sense of community by sending her cats’ special belongings around the country to visit other blogging cats. (You can read about Phoebe’s bikini and sunglasses, and Joanie’s pet cow, Moo.) I love participating and blogging about Lola’s and Lexy’s experiences. Ellen crochets the cutest toys (her drumstick is one of Lexy’s favorites) and has been known to send gifts from the tooth fairy to cats who have lost teeth. I’m so happy she expanded her creativity and shared Prancie’s story with the world.
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| Photo courtesy Ellen Pilch |
From the Publisher:
Prancie’s Prayer is the first picture book written by Ellen J. Pilch, illustrated by Nicolas Peruzzo, and published by Mirror Publishing. It is about an orange cat who finds herself homeless one cold winter. She has trouble finding something to eat and a warm place to sleep, but with a little help from above she finds all of that and more in her wonderful forever home. The story is loosely based on how the author’s cat arrived at her doorstep.
What are my thoughts? I love this book! It is well-written with a message that all cat lovers will enjoy. My hope is that parents will speak to their children about the importance of being responsible pet parents while reading it to them. This is the purrfect gift for cat lovers of all ages.
Make sure to follow Ellen’s blog at 15 and Meowing to see what her gang is up to.
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