Total Cat Mojo Review
This is my review of Jackson Galaxy’s book Total Cat Mojo. I admire the man. He has a very profound understanding of cat behavior. He has even developed his own language to describe and explain it.
However, the book has a problem. I have a feeling that he discussed with his collaborators the concept behind the book and was drawn away from his personal preferences. There are a myriad ways to explain cat behavior and how to look after a domestic cat in a book and I think he chose the wrong way – for him.
The book should have been about half the length and it should have been written exclusively by Mr Galaxy in his cat language. It should have been more straightforward and less technical while retaining the nuances and depth of information. It is about explaining with clarity. And the history of domestic cats and other ancillary information could have been left out.
I don’t think working with Mikel Delgado PhD improved the book. This is not to criticise Mikel Delgado PhD who clearly is very wise and knowledgeable. I just think the extra bits in the book don’t add but detract from the book. It is a classic case of less would have been more.
The kind of book I think he should have written would have been about 100 pages and along the lines of Dr Desmond Morris’s Catwatching The Essential Guide To Feline Behavior which is probably the best book on cat behavior ever written despite being published 33 years ago.
That book is much easier to read. In short I believe Total Cat Mojo is too complicated, too dense and lacks clarity. I think he has overcomplicated it which will prevent the average cat owner from reading it in depth and getting the most out of it.
Jackson Galaxy’s specially constructed phrases and words to describe cat behavior is something which is part of his presentation and it is a useful aid to explain feline behavior but it creates opacity in the explanations. When you add this to the extra details in the book of cat history etc.. it becomes too dense a read to please most people.
There could also be a few pages at the beginning explaining his phrases such as the “Raw Cat” and “Scent Soakers”. These are two examples. It is pretty obvious what they mean but not totally clear to all readers.
It almost seems that the book is directed at knowledgeable cat owners when it should be directed at the broad mass of cat owners who are seeking ways to become cat guardians. This is why I believe it should be simplified and shortened.
I use the book as a reference. It is nice to know what Jackson thinks on cat behavior and problem solving. It could be more of a reference book with a better index in order to better serve concerned cat owners.
These are my personal thoughts.
P.S. It might look as if I am deliberately criticising Mr Galaxy. I am not. These are my genuine thoughts and I am happy for people to disagree with me.
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