Caleb Carr was a close friend of mine; he passed away a little over two weeks ago.
Although he said that he possessed an inherent melancholia, his ribald sense of humor was rivaled only by his brilliance. Though we went to the same grade school in Greenwich Village, NY, we developed a friendship of 20 years after I learned that he was a huge writer/director Preston Sturges fan and he found out that Preston Sturges’ eldest son, Solomon Sturges, lived with my husband and me. It turned out that we had many interests in common, including our shared love of animals and our mutual interest in the dark side.
My Beloved Monster, his autobiographical love story about his life with his Siberian Forest cat, Masha, was released on April 16th of this year. His first bestseller, The Alienist, was released in 1994 to spectacular fanfare and massive success; a television series followed.
Prior to its release date, Caleb sent me the advanced manuscript for My Beloved Monster, and I immediately knew that it would be an instant bestseller and a classic in its genre.
My review of the book My Beloved Monster by Caleb Carr:
I have only positive words for what I would call Mr. Carr’s autobiographical love story with his feline companion of 17 years, Masha, a Siberian Forest cat, and an incredibly moving story at that.
Beautifully written, at times harrowing and heartbreaking, I was moved to tears during several junctures in the story of Mr. Carr’s life with Masha and was completely dissolved by the last page.
Insightful, perceptive, enthralling, brilliantly engaging, riveting, and informative (I learned so much about cats that I didn’t know before, and about Mr. Carr’s life as well, past and present), it was quite the page-turner and impossible to put down.
It is a wonderful, wonderful book and a true testament to two beautiful souls and their profound connection to one another… if you read only one book this year, please make it this one.
