Dear Sparkle Virtual Book Tour December ’10 – January ’11

Dear Sparkle

Join Sparkle, author of the humor pet book, Dear Sparkle: Cat-to-Cat Advice from the World’s Foremost Feline Columnist (Adams Media) as she virtually tours the blogosphere December 6  2010 – January 19 2011 on her first virtual book tour with Pump Up Your Book!

About Sparkle

Sparkle Sparkle is an award-winning author, blogger, advice columnist and supermodel. She is also a cat – a ruddy Somali of champion lineage, in fact, whose father, GC Tajhara’s Miles Davis, was twice on the cover of Cat Fancy. Sparkle’s first book, Dear Sparkle: Advice from One Cat to Another, won the Wild Card category at the 2007 Hollywood Book Festival and honorable mentions in several other contests. She also recently came home with the Pettie Award — the pet blogging equivalent of an Oscar — for Best Cat Blog. Sparkle lives in Los Angeles with two humans, two feline roommates (both rescue cats), and (unfortunately) a dog.

Dear Sparkle: Cat-to-Cat Advice from the World’s Foremost Feline Columnist (Adams Media) is her second book.

You can visit Sparkle’s blog at http://www.sparklecat.com.

About Dear Sparkle: Cat-to-Cat Advice from the World’s Foremost Feline Columnist

Dear Sparkle Face it, kitties, your humans can’t help you untangle your problems — especially when they’re usually the ones driving you crazy! But never fear, the world’s foremost feline authority, Sparkle the Cat, is here to solve all of your kitty conundrums. With 70 Q&As, “Sparkle Says” sidebars, and full-color photos throughout, this guide is definitely NOT your usual human-written cat book.

Whether you’re a confused kitty who doesn’t understand why you’re supposed to stay off the couch, a cat who’s furious because the new puppy ate your catnip stash, or a freaked-out feral who wants to return to the wild, Sparkle has the wise — and often hilarious — answers for your woes. And who knows? Humans who read it (with your permission, of course) may even learn something new about the way we behave.

Read an Excerpt!

COUCH CONFLICT
Dear Sparkle,
This human brought me home from the local rescue, so I’m still getting used to things around here. Some of it’s nice—great cat food and a cool cat tree that’s taller than my new human. But there are other things I’m not so sure about, like the ongoing debate my human and I have been having over the couch. For some unknown reason, she wants me to stay off it, but it’s the best perch in the house! It catches the afternoon sun just right, and it’s an even more comfortable place to nap than the cat tree is. I hate to tell my human, but I ain’t giving it up! So how to I make her stop shooing me away every time I try to settle down for a nice, sunny nap?
Signed,
Couch Potato

Dear C. Potato,
When it comes to getting something we really want, we cats will always outlast humans. Trust me, that couch is all yours. But you already know that. You’re going to keep jumping up on it until your human lets you be. It’s a process, and there’s really no way to shorten the time frame. Just keep on doing what you’re doing. Eventually the nagging will stop.

Don’t let this inevitability lure you into complacency, however. Your human will pull a few surprises, but there are always “work-arounds.” If she thinks you will shed on the couch, she might toss a throw over it. This could be a good thing. Throws are comfy, and they also indicate that you’ve won the battle, as long as you lie on them, not the bare couch. If your human worries that you will sharpen your claws on the couch, she may use “Sticky Paws,” a two-sided tape that feels gross under our paws. Don’t step on it! At least not until you’ve rubbed all over it and covered up the stickiness with your fur. Then the Sticky Paws tape will smell like you and let the world know the couch is yours.

As for direct confrontations with your human (her yelling, that dreaded spray bottle, etc.), just do most of your couch sitting when she isn’t home, but let her catch you often enough to make her realize that the couch is your territory.

NICKNAME NIGHTMARE
Dear Sparkle,
When my human brought me home, she decided to call me Max, which I thought was a fairly decent name. I even come when I hear her say it (usually that means she has some food for me). But now that we’ve been living together for a few months, she has started to call me some wacky versions of my name—Maxie-Boy, Maxie-Baxie, Mad Max, and the worst, Maxie-Boo-Boo-Baby. It’s disgusting, not to mention undignified. I am MAX, M-A-X, no “Boo,” no “Baby,” and I’m only “Mad” Max when she starts messing with my name! How can I keep her from mangling my perfectly decent name?
Signed,
Just Max

Dear Max,
Silly kitty! The answer to your problem is obvious. Every time your human starts mangling your name, make yourself scarce. Only show up when she uses your proper name. You do have to be consistent about this. The big mistake cats make is responding to a nickname at dinnertime or when their humans are being nice to them. Doing this only encourages them to keep using it. If you want to be called Max, then only respond to Max. When your human uses one of those other, unsatisfactory names, walk away, no matter how tempting it is to stick around and be petted, and no matter how hungry you are. Yes, you may have to miss out on a few dinners while your human wanders around your home, calling out, “Maxie-Boo-Boo-Baby, where are yooouuuu?” but unless you want that as your permanent name, you’d better stay hunkered down in the closet or in the darkest part of the guest room. The penchant for hideous nicknames is almost an addiction with humans, and they even do it to each other. You need to make it 100 percent clear that you don’t play that game, or you’ll be stuck in a never-ending version of it.

Here’s what reviewers are saying about Dear Sparkle!

“In addition to providing outstanding advice that even humans who have already been well-trained by their resident felines will find valuable, the book is beautifully designed and includes many stunning full-color photos of the beautiful Sparkle to illustrate her points.  This book is not just a great addition to any cat parent’s cat care library, it also makes the purrfect gift for cat lovers.”

— Ingrid King, author of THE CONSCIOUS CAT

“Kitties, this book is chock full of some of the best Cat Advice in the UNIVERSE! We read it eagerly and took copious amounts of notes. We cat-eared the sections we liked, and chewed holes into the pages with our favorite passages. The book is divided into logical sections dealing with play, the litterbox, strangers and MORE. Sparkle deals with all the issues expertly. We think even our Mommy (incredibly dense) was able to grasp the concepts outlined in the enjoyable Q & A format. Photos of Sparkle (Gorgeous!) grace nearly every other page in the book, and there are little bubbles of “Sparkle Says” wisdom throughout, too. The book is printed on nice firm nommable paper…it’s a STEAL at $9.95. We highly recommend this book, and we give it 4 paws up!”

— Catnip Lounge

“Believe me, kitty pals, you’re going to want to read this book and learn all the inside scoop. and for those of you who don’t read, there are plenty of beautiful pictures of Sparkle illustrating the points she makes in the text.”

— Max the Quilt Cat Blog

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Dear Sparkle Virtual Book Tour Schedule

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cat_and_dog_in_library Monday, December 6
Interviewed at Examiner
Interviewed at Let’s Talk Virtual Book Tours

Tuesday, December 7
Guest blogging at Pets and Authors

Wednesday, December 8
Book reviewed at The Cajun Book Lady

Thursday, December 9
Guest blogging at The Cajun Book Lady
“Seven Tips on How to Live Like a Cat”

Friday, December 10
Interviewed at Shine

Monday, December 13
Book reviewed at Celtic Lady Reviews

Tuesday, December 14
Book reviewed at WV Stitcher

Wednesday, December 15
Interviewed at Pump Up Your Book
Guest blogging at Katnip Lounge

Thursday, December 16
Guest blogging at Literarily Speaking

Friday, December 17
Interviewed at Dogs Rule Cats Drool

Monday, January 3
Book giveaway at I Am a Reader

Tuesday, January 4
Interviewed at The Writer’s Life
Reviewed at Reading at the Beach

Wednesday, January 5
Book reviewed at Journey to the End of the TBR Pile

Thursday, January 6
Guest blogging at Fantasy Pages

Friday, January 7
Guest blogging at The Book Boost

Monday, January 10
Guest blogging at The Story Behind the Book

Tuesday, January 11
Guest blogging at Night Owl Reviews

Wednesday, January 12
Guest blogging at The Book Faery Reviews

Thursday, January 13
Guest blogging at 4 the Love of Books

Friday, January 14
Book reviewed at 4 the Love of Books

Book reviewed at Steph the Bookworm

Wednesday, January 19
Book reviewed at The Book Faery Reviews

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Sparkle’s  DEAR SPARKLE VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR ‘10 will officially begin on December 6 ‘10 and end on January 14, ‘11. Please contact Dorothy Thompson at thewriterslife@yahoo.com if you are interested in hosting and/or reviewing her book or click here to use the form. Thank you!

UPDATE: Sparkle’s DEAR SPARKLE VIRTUAL BOOK TOUR is now closed.  Thanks to all participating blog hosts and reviewers!

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If you would like to book your own virtual book tour with us, click here to find out how!

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