Pemberton, Bonnie

PERSONAL:

Married.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Fort Worth, TX. Home and office—Fe-Lines, Inc., 1021 W. Enon, Fort Worth, TX 76140. E-mail—kittichik@aol.com.

CAREER:

Author and entrepreneur. Fe-Lines, Inc. (pet product company), Ft. Worth, TX, founder and owner; playwright and copywriter; actor in radio and television.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Children's Choices selection, International Reading Association/Children's Book Council, 2008, for The Cat Master.

WRITINGS:

The Cat Master (novel), Marshall Cavendish (New York, NY), 2007.

SIDELIGHTS:

In her debut novel, The Cat Master, Bonnie Pemberton presents a tale of sibling rivalry. The owner of a pet product business, Pemberton wrote the book as a tribute to a beloved feline. "I'd always worked in the arts as a playwright, copywriter and actor, and after moving back to Texas from Los Angeles, I used the novel as a creative outlet," she told CatChannel.com interviewer Stacy N. Hackett. "Only after reading it in front of a writing group, and realizing how enthusiastic the responses were for the story, did I get the sense that it might be worthy of publication." Pemberton also found inspiration in a colony of feral cats that lived in her neighborhood. "I … wanted to explore the effects of animal abandonment, human cruelty and indifference toward animals," she remarked on her home page, "as well as human compassion, what it's like for animals, (wild as well as domestic), to survive on their own." As she told Hackett, "Cats are a never ending source of amusement, amazement and admiration for me."

The Cat Master focuses on the relationship between Buddy, a former alley cat who enjoys the safety of living indoors, and his jealous brother, Jett. Before he dies, the elderly Cat Master, the spiritual leader of all felines, attempts to telepathically communicate with Buddy, his chosen successor. Unfortunately, the message is intercepted by Jett, who lures Buddy outdoors. Enlisting the aid of his animal friends, including housecats, a possum, and a mockingbird, Buddy attempts to fulfill his destiny. "The characterizations of the various animals are well limned," noted Booklist contributor Sally Estes. "A cavalcade of cliffhangers and coincidences … provide plenty of excitement," stated a critic in Kirkus Reviews, and Kara Schaff Dean, writing in School Library Journal, similarly noted that Pemberton's "strong cast of supporting characters … keeps the action moving to an ultimately satisfying conclusion."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Booklist, June 1, 2007, Sally Estes, review of The Cat Master, p. 72.

Fort Worth Star Telegram, February 8, 1997, Dusty Rainboldt, "Locally Produced Problem-Solving Products for Owners of Felines Are the Cat's Meow."

Kirkus Reviews, April 1, 2007, review of The Cat Master.

School Library Journal, June, 2007, Kara Schaff Dean, review of The Cat Master, p. 157.

ONLINE

Bonnie Pemberton Home Page,http://www.bonniepemberton.com (June 30, 2008).

CatChannel.com,http://www.catchannel.com/ (October, 2007), Stacy N. Hackett, "Meet Author Bonnie Pemberton."

Creative Soul Web log,http://creativesoulbydebmc.blogspot.com/ (May 12, 2008), "A Painful Pleasure, Part I," interview; (May 15, 2008) "A Painful Pleasure, Part II," interview.