Catseye
By: Andre Norton / Narrated By: Eric Michael Summerer
Length: 6 hrs and 20 mins
Dated but nice enough…
I’ve been in the mood for a little SciFi, and that’s exactly what I got with Catseye by Andre Norton: a liiiiittle SciFi. Mostly it’s a story of friendship and being willing to fight for what a person believes is right.
Eric Michael Summerer’s narration is okay, but nothing thrilling, though he does indeed try to differentiate between a cast of characters that are otherworldly. It’s just that his tones are smooth and straight, almost like an anchorman. Considering the action scenes aren’t quite filled with action, the audiobook really could’ve done with a narrator whose tones varied and caused excitement.
The story follows Troy Horan, a young man desperate to find a stable place on the planet he’s been relocated to. He finds temporary employment at an interstellar exotic animal pet shop, and right away, he finds that he's able to pick up thoughts from the shop’s inmates. His father had a way with animals and, it turns out, he does too.
But there’s danger. Someone wants the Terran animals dead—they are perhaps sentient and as they are exotic enough to be in the homes of the ruling classes, they could divulge secrets they pick up, with devastating consequences.
A murder drives Troy to save the Terran cats, Terran foxes, and the Kinkajou he has a very special bond with. And while the writing is dated, and it feels like listening to something that is just one scene after another rather than action-packed situations with tension galore, it’s nice enough. The moral of the story; that we do not rule all creatures but are companions and helpers, really resonated with me, naturally.
It’s a sweet story, with varied happenings, and I liked Troy well-enough even though I didn’t see him as a hero who had many answers when everything hit the fan. If you’re in the mood for dated SciFi, classic as all get-out, you might give Catseye a try. It does, after all, have very special animals, not the usual sort!
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