What a treat of a book! Like a cat strutting down a fence with full confidence, this book explores idioms and sayings from around the world about cats. Yes, those fuzzy, adorable felines who make us laugh, comfort us when we are blue, kill those vicious mice and bring them to us as tributes (threats, they are showing us their capabilities), this books takes their eccentricities and translates them into words.

Among the pages are sayings written in Native languages, translated into English, and then related to common meaning. All are accompanied by drawings of beautiful drawings of cats, cats, and more cats.

Some of my favorites are:

1) Like a cat with seven souls
Arabic - ruah bisabe alaqti Mutalu
USE: To describe someone who has been through a lot of challenges but has managed to cope well.

2) A Cat Can't Stop Stealing Fish
Simplified Chinese - Māo găi bù liăo tōu xīng
USE: To describe a person whose habits are deeply engrained and unlikely to change. Often used to justify the behavior of men, similar to "boys will be boys."

3) There Are Four Cats
Spanish - Hay control Gatos
Meaning: There is very low attendance at this event.
I liked this one very much of a 2 part episode of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

If you are a cat lover and a logophile (lover of words), this book is a must-have for you.

Author Hannah Shaw and her husband journeyed to other countries to research and photograph cats and asked the locals about cat-related sayings and idioms. Cats are chock full of character and cultures have their perspectives on the complex nature of these creatures. Sayings are rich and varied, true and humorous, and the charming illustrations made me smile and appreciate the cats in my life.

In this collection, the author includes sayings in the original language, translates them into English, and explains the meaning. Some examples are, "The first cats over the fence" (Polish), "To buy a cat in a sack" (German), "Cat's cough" (Croatian), "The hasty cat gave birth to blind kittens" (Italian), "Every cat is black at night" (Czech), and "Even an old cat drinks milk" (Swahili). Once you think them through, they make sense, a fun way to learn bits about cultures.

This alluring and captivating little book would add a bright spot to any cat lover's day, ideal as a special gift tucked in with cat treats or toys. A gem of pure joy and nostalgia.

“Cat Got Your Tongue?” is a delightful exploration of cat-related idioms from around the world. In the introduction author Hannah Shaw (aka The Kitten Lady) explains that she gathered many of these phrases during her travels for “Cats of the World.”

Each phrase is in English, the native language is stated, then the phrase is in the native language. The phrase is then explained in English. One of my favorites is the Yiddish “I care like a cat cares that it’s Wednesday.” This means that one doesn’t care at all.

The hand drawn illustrations are playful and depict the cats in various situations. Don’t miss the cat decked out in a hunting costume.

If you’re a cat lover, this should be added to your shelf of cat books.

This book is great for feline lovers of all ages and would make an excellent gift book.

I received an advance review copy for free from NetGalley and Ten Speed Press, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Most of these phrases were new to me and the illustrations are adorable. This would be a great gift for a cat lover.

This was a fun and educational read! I love cats and finding out all these new sayings all round the world was very fascinating. I also loved the illustrations :)

CATS!!! This is a collection of cat related proverbs. I absolutely loved it. There were so many phrases and the art is adorable. I need more of these right now!

5 stars

Hannah Shaw AKA The Kitten Lady has written a cute and whimsical little book describing different cat sayings from around the world. We have a lot of sayings involving cats in the States but we aren’t alone! Read this little book to learn some. The illustrations were bright and colorful. I’d buy this for a cat lover in my life.

**Thanks to the author and Ten Speed Press for the e-arc I received via NetGalley in exchange for my honest review.**

A fun book for cat lovers filled with cat sayings from around the world. Each page has a saying, where that saying is from, the saying in it's native language, and then a little summary explaining the saying. My only complaint is I wish there were more sayings!

From the beautiful illustrations to the different languages spoken around the world, this book was a very whimsical read. It is a short novella that shares 60 feline phrases from across the globe. The illustrations were beyond great, in my opinion. This book made me feel lighthearted and relaxed. It is a very easy to read book that I found to be informative! It also made me laugh quite a few times while reading it! This is a book that will put a big smile on your face and will leave you feeling like you just had a big heartwarming hug. I highly recommend this book to anyone that is a lover of cats! Overall, I rate this a 5 out of 5 stars!

Thank you to NetGalley, author Hannah Shaw and Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed Press for this delightful digital advanced reader’s copy in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.

This book is expected to be published on July 1, 2025!

Thank you Netgalley, Hannah Shaw and Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed Press | Ten Speed Press for the eArc of Cat Got Your Tongue.

Being a cat lover myself this book is both beautifully illustrated and simply put together. I love different languages is used throughout the book that corrosponds with each illustration. This also ties in with a saying that involves a cat and what the saying actually means. This makes for a real fun read which is also beautifully expressed within the illustrations.

" There are many ways, said Grandma while wiping the table with a cat " ( Finnish translation ) Means there is more than one way of doing a job. I however know this saying as " There is more than one way to skin a cat "

Seeing as the members of my family have cats, this will make a wonderful birthday /Christmas pressie!

5 stars

This book was great. I loved learning about these cute cat idioms, especially ones that I'd never heard of before. And the illustrations were very cute.

IT's all fluff and pamcakes! The books are super simple yet the format they used are amusing. Love the illustrations and details. I wish we could have second book in the series😆

A book perfect for cat connoisseurs and linguists alike! It's so interesting to see how cats have entwined themselves into languages across the world in such casual but notable ways. From cute to thoughtful to playful, all sorts of languages manage to capture the essence of cats and it's really such a treat to see a large selection of them in one place. Truly stunning, textured art. Would make a great gift book.

Cat Got Your Tongue

This was such a fun and delightful read! The author has compiled cat-related phrases and expressions from various parts of the world, collecting them during her travels across different regions.

Each phrase is presented in its original language, along with an English translation and a simple example to illustrate its meaning. The book is also filled with charming illustrations that add to its playful appeal.

It's a very cute little book, which will be a great read for cat lovers and language enthusiasts equally. This was a light, feel-good read, which is bound to bring a smile to your face.

Thank you so much @netgalley and @tenspeedpress for providing the earc of this book.

3.75🌟

I LOVE cats. If you don't love cats, who even are you? I loved learning all of these sayings and idioms!

Interesting cat sayings from around the world with cute illustrations. This would be very giftable to any cat lover.

I enjoyed reading Cat Got Your Tongue? Curious Cat Phrases from Around the World by New York Times bestselling author Hannah Shaw, which features illustrations by New Yorker cartoonist Sophie Lucido Johnson.

60 Cat related proverbs and idioms from around the world are presented in their native language along with a translation of the phrase in english, a simple explanation of their use and meaning, and an interesting illustration by Johnson.

This cute little book could be a great gift for a cat-lover you know!

Publication Date July 1, 2025
Clarkson Potter/Ten Speed Press

Humor & Satire

#Catgotyourtongue #netgalley

Such a cute and interesting book!

Perfect for people who like to know fun facts to share with others (and those who love cats too, of course)

From the creator of Cats of the World comes a new multi-cultural cat-splosion.

This book of idioms and proverbs would be loved by anyone who loves cats, languages, and learning. Hannah Shaw includes the phrases from various countries, the origin country, and the language it is originally in. It was fascinating to find out that some of the phrases we see used in the U.S. have similar counterparts in different cultures.

I don’t know why I didn’t recognize the name of the author; I’ve been following Hannah Shaw on social media as the Kitten Lady for several years now. She and her husband have such big hearts and supreme love for all things meow. As it goes, any of her work is worth the support and worth the read.

#ThxNetGalley #HannahShaw #CatGotYourTongue

This was adorable! I've been a fan of Hannah Shaw's for a while now through Instagram, so I was so excited to get a chance to read this early. It's a quick read, but so much fun. The illustrations were adorable, and I might have to adopt some of these sayings from around the world. What I liked about this book is that the sayings weren't just translated into English, but also into their original language as well. This is, without a doubt, the perfect for cat lovers and a fun coffee table book. It would definitely start conversations, and one I'll need to add to my collections of fun cat books when it hits shelves in July!