Trim, The Cartographer's Cat: The ship's cat who helped Flinders map Australia

Trim, the ships cat who accompanied Matthew Flinders on his voyages, has six memorial statues, including one outside Euston Station in London. The book "Trim, The Cartographers Cat" is an ode to Trim, reproducing Flinders' tribute to him and discussing his life and views. It includes beautiful maps, historical artworks, and quirky illustrations, making it a unique and treasured gift for Flinders fans, Trim fans, and cat lovers worldwide.

Format: Hardback
Length: 128 pages
Publication date: 17 October 2019
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC

Trim, the ships cat who accompanied Matthew Flinders on his voyages to circumnavigate and map the coastline of Australia from 1801 to 1803, was a remarkable and adventurous cat. He fell overboard while at sea but managed to swim back to the vessel and climb back on board by scaling a rope, cementing his position as Flinders's beloved companion. Together, they survived a voyage around the world, the circumnavigation of Australia, and a shipwreck. When Flinders was imprisoned by the French in Mauritius in 1803, Trim shared his captivity until one day he mysteriously disappeared, which Flinders attributed to his being stolen and eaten by a hungry slave. Trim, The Cartographers Cat, is an ode to this much-loved ships cat, which will warm the heart of any cat lover. The first part of the book reproduces Flinders's own whimsical tribute to Trim, written while in captivity in the early 1800s, with added 'friendly footnotes to provide some background to Flinders's numerous literary allusions and nautical terms. Next, the book discusses where Flinders was when he wrote his tribute and why, and what his letters and journals from that time tell us about his 'sporting, affectionate and useful companion. Finally, we learn what Trim's views on all of this might have been, in a fun and fanciful observation on his premature epitaph. Accompanying all of this are beautiful maps, historical artworks, quirky original illustrations by Ad Long, and excerpts from Flinders's original script, showing his beautiful handwriting. This book is a must-read for anyone interested in the history of cats, ships, and exploration.

Weight: 310g
Dimension: 188 x 138 x 17 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781472967220