Natural Cat Care by Dr. Bruce Fogle. This is a very basic and very general introduction to holistic care techniques used to treat a variety of cat ailments.

Dr. Pitcairn's Complete Guide to Natural Health Care for Dogs and Cats by Dr. Richard H. Pitcairn and Susan Hubble Pitcairn. This is generally considered one of the foundation texts on holistic health care for animals. It also contains vet- and animal-tested homemade food recipes for dogs and cats.

The New Natural Cat by Anitra Frazier. Another classic book on natural diets, behavior issues and alternative remedies.

Homeopathic First Aid for Animals by Kaetheryn Walker. This book, written in narrative format, shows a variety of case studies in which homeopathic remedies were used successfully to treat behavioral and health problems.

Complete Care for Your Aging Cat by Amy D. Shojai. This book will show you how you can make life easier for your senior cat and keep his or her health optimal. It also has a chapter on animal loss and making the decision about euthanasia.

My Fat Cat by Martha Garvey. This short and easy-to-read book provides a simple 10-step plan you can use to help your obese kitty lose weight. Available at bookstores or through Healthy Living Books.

Four Paws, Five Directions by Cheryl Schwartz, DVM. This book is about using Traditional Chinese Medicine to restore animals to health. Note: This is an advanced-level text and would probably overwhelm anyone without a good deal of knowledge about animal anatomy, acupressure points and Chinese medicine's underlying philosophy.

Roger Tabor's Cat Behavior by Roger Tabor. A very basic introduction that describes the origins and reasons for a variety of cat behaviors.

Think Like A Cat: How to Raise a Well-Adjusted Cat and Not a Sour Puss by Pam Johnson-Bennett. A good book for people on how to understand cat behavior and provide proper socialization and training.

The Heart That Is Loved Never Forgets by Kaetheryn Walker. Veterinary homeopath Kaetheryn Walker takes readers through a narrative-format series of case studies in which homeopathic remedies were used to help animals suffering from the loss of an animal or human companion.

The Nine Emotional Lives of Cats by Jeffrey Moussaief Masson. In this book, Masson observes the many cats living on his property and describes nine particular types of emotions he witnessed and how those emotions play out in inter-cat behavior.

The Cat Who Cried for Help by Dr. Nicholas Dodman. Dodman, a veterinarian and animal behaviorist, discusses cases where cats' behavior problems were solved with a combination of psychopharmacological drugs and behavior modification techniques. Personally, we think it's a little too heavy on the "advocating for drugs" side, but it's worth a read to see how vets are treating stubborn behavior issues.

CatSmart: The Ultimate Guide to Understanding, Caring for, and Living With Your Cat by Myrna Milani, DVM. This is an excellent resource for people considering adopting a cat for the first time. It discusses behavior, cats' physical and emotional needs, what level of emotion, money, etc., you are willing to commit to keeping your cat health, and more. Even if you already share your life with cats, some of the questions posed in this book will give you "paws" to think.

The Feline Mystique by Clea Simon. This book discusses the bond between women and cats, what this bond teaches both participants, and proposes some reasons why the woman-cat bond has been disparaged for so long in our culture.

Animals as Teachers and Healers by Susan Chernak McElroy. Inspirational stories about how animals have helped their humans recover from an array of physical or emotional problems, and how these animals have taught them what's truly meaningful. Unlike some books of this nature, this one does not have a bias toward a particular religious path, so Christians, pagans, new-agers, old-agers or whatever will not find their spiritual sensibilities offended.

The Cat and the Tao by Kwong Kuen Shan. This beautiful little book has a series of delicately drawn paintings featuring cats and sayings from the Tao.

Maverick Cats: Encounters with Feral Cats by Ellen Perry Berkeley. In this book, Berkeley writes about her years of taking care of a small feral cat colony living on her rural farm. The stories are touching and they remind us that animals need us as much as we need them.

Wet Pets and Other Watery Tales, edited by Hazel Weidman and Jacqueline Teare. This series of short stories was compiled as a labor of love and a fund-raiser for the Camden-Rockport Animal Rescue League of Camden, Maine. A number of midcoast Maine residents contributed tales of their water-loving animals. Order it from Trafford Publishing by calling (toll-free in the United States and Canada) 1-888-232-4444 or visiting www.trafford.com; its catalog number is 03-1894. You can click on this link to order it online.

Tailchaser's Song by Tad Williams. A fantasy story about a young ginger tomcat named Fritti Tailchaser, who sets out on an epic adventure to rescue his best friend, Hushpad, after she goes missing.

The Wild Road and The Golden Cat by Gabriel King. A pair of fantasy novels about the adventures of a runaway kitten named Tag and his mentor, a black cat named Magicou.

The Fur Person by May Sarton. Told from the point of view of the Fur Person himself, this sweet story is about a cat and the two women who welcomed him into their home and took care of him until his last days.

The Autobiography of Foudini M. Cat by Susan Fromberg Schaeffer. The story of a stray kitten rescued from death's door by a caring human, and the years they shared together.

The Silent Miaow: A Guide for Kittens, Strays, and Homeless Cats by Paul Gallico. This text, allegedly an autobiography written by a cat who made his way into the hert of tough-minded sports writer Paul Gallico, is heartwarming and lovely. I thought it was out of print, because the edition I have is a hardcover published in the mid-1960s. But now I see it's available on Amazon.com, and it still comes with beautiful photos by Suzanne Szasz.

Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats by T.S. Eliot. Possibly the only non-depressing piece of poetry ever created by the writer of "The Waste Land" and other post-World-War-I angst canticles, this is the book on which the musical "Cats" is based. Of course, the book is better. Mama says she learned how to read from this book!