Review of "The Cat Who Sang for the Birds: A Jim Qwilleran Cozy Mystery" by Lilian Jackson Braun

In this 20th book in 'The Cat Who' cozy mystery series, newspaper columnist/amateur sleuth Jim Qwilleran helps solve crimes involving arson, theft, and more. The book works fine as a standalone.

*****

Jim Qwilleran (Qwill) was a crime journalist in Chicago when he inherited billions of dollars from his mother's friend Fanny Klingenschoen. To receive the money Qwill had to move to the city of Pickax in Moose County, which is '400 miles north of everywhere.' So Qwill and his two Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum, relocated to Pickax. There Qwill used his inheritance to set up the Klingenschoen Fund, which supports projects that benefit the community.



Quill had a huge apple barn converted into a unique home for himself and his felines.....



.....and then built an enclosed gazebo nearby, so the cats could watch birds.



Qwill's dwelling is the talk of the town, and attracts attention from both Pickax residents and tourists.

Quill writes a twice-weekly column, called The Qwill Pen, for the 'Moose County Something' newspaper. Quill is very familiar with Pickax and its residents because he's always researching topics and interviewing people for his column. Thus Quill knows when things are 'off' in town, especially if he's alerted by his cat Koko - who has a supernatural ability to detect crime and criminals. Koko communicates by yowling, licking photos, knocking down books, moving compass needles, throwing checkers on the floor, shredding newspapers, and so on.



In this book Qwill interviews two people for The Quill Pen: a young artist who raises butterflies and makes paintings of them;



and an elderly farming widow who sticks to the old traditions and takes in old dogs.



Qwill is always interested in the lives of his interviewees, and takes note when the butterfly artist's bartender boyfriend is suddenly flush with money. Quill also takes umbrage on behalf of the farm wife when she's cheated on a property sale. When the old woman dies in unfortunate circumstances, Qwill makes sure she has a fitting funeral.

Koko seems to know something bad is going on with respect to the two women, but his 'communications' aren't always easy to interpret, so it takes a while for Qwill to catch on. However, he gets there in the end.

Meanwhile, Qwill gets involved with the town's Adult Spelling Bee;



initiates a naming contest for two new library cats;



attends an art show;



buys an antique compass; etc.



Though 'the cat who' books are cozy mysteries, they're also stories about the colorful residents of Pickax. These include Qwill's lady friend Polly Duncan- who runs the library; Qwill's friend Arch Riker - who publishes the Moose County Something; Arch Riker's wife Mildred - who's a great cook; Derek Cuttlebrink - a 6' 8'' tall college student who acts in the community theater; Weatherby Goode (aka Joe Bunker) - who reports the weather; Hixie Rice - who runs public relations events; Police Chief Andrew Brodie - who knows about Koko's special abilities; Celia Robinson - who leaves Qwill casseroles and does a spot of espionage for him; and more.

I enjoyed this cozy mystery and its quirky characters.

Rating: 3 stars