Animals are a constant source of comfort and fascination, the ones in the wild and the ones we live with in our home. I love all kinds of animals but I am especially fond of cats. There are cats and dogs in many of my books. When I lived on my own in New York City, I had two cats named Fifi (black, long-haired) and Mitzi (a tiger cat), who I wrote about in my book Flora and Tiger. My wife, Bobbie and I had a lovely cat named Annie (grey, long-haired) for many years. You may have also noticed a white dog in my stories. Our beloved Tock, a white Samoyed, was the inspiration. (By the way, Tock was named for the dog in the book, The Phantom Tollbooth, written by my friend Norton Juster.)
We do not have a pet right now, but when in Florida we are visited regularly by a stray cat, named by the neighbors – Whitey – who we very much enjoyed seeing each day.
