{"id":213672,"date":"2025-09-09T20:08:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-09T20:08:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/213672\/"},"modified":"2025-09-09T20:08:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-09T20:08:10","slug":"shops-cats-of-new-york-book-spotlights-the-citys-best-kitties","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/213672\/","title":{"rendered":"Shops Cats of New York book spotlights the city’s best kitties"},"content":{"rendered":"

According to Tamar Arslanian, co-author of \u201cShop Cats of New York<\/a>\u201d (Running Press, out now), her collaborator, Andrew Marttila, is something of a cat whisperer.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe always knows what treats to crinkle to get their attention or what one toy to use to get them to look at him,\u201d said Arslanian, who lent her words to the book, while Marttila handled the photos. <\/p>\n

The adorable new tome is a revised, expanded version of the pair\u2019s 2016 book, which had gone out of print. Most, but not all, of the dozens of cats featured are new. <\/p>\n

A new, expanded \u201cShop Cats of New York\u201d celebrates the city\u2019s working felines. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

When it comes to photographing his four-legged subjects, Marttila lets them do what they will. He never manhandles or poses the animals.<\/p>\n

\u201cI let them call the shots,\u201d said Marttila, who is based in San Diego. Arslanian is a New Yorker, who lives in Gramercy with three cats of her own. <\/p>\n

To her, the book is not just about cats, it\u2019s about the city. Nearly all of the establishments featured are local small businesses, and the felines are a part of the fabric of the stores \u2014 or the hotel, as is the case with Hamlet who resides at the legendary Algonquin Hotel. <\/p>\n

\u201cIf you love New York, it\u2019s just another angle, right?\u201d she said. Have a look at eight of the cats in the book.<\/p>\n

Gracie<\/p>\n

Gracie is featured on the book\u2019s cover. She\u2019s known for her adorable wave. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

The book\u2019s cover cat is a rescue from the Bronx, who is at least partly Snowshoe Siamese. She greets literary folks at Williamsburg\u2019s Quimby\u2019s Bookstore.<\/p>\n

Her most endearing quality is her ability to mimic waving Japanese good luck cat figurines (maneki-neko) with her pretty white paw in front of the store\u2019s window.<\/p>\n

Gracie has so many fans and admirers that the bookstore\u2019s owner has had to put up signs advising customers not to disturb her while sleeping.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s \u201cdefinitely a ham,\u201d said Marttila. <\/p>\n

Hamlet<\/p>\n

Hamlet is the eighth male cat named Hamlet to call the Algonquin Hotel home. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

This chunky orange feline is the eighth male cat named \u201cHamlet\u201d to hold court at the storied Algonquin Hotel in Times Square, which was first opened in 1902. <\/p>\n

Marriott bought the hotel in 2010, but, thankfully the global chain hasn\u2019t done away with the furry resident.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m very happy to see and hear that [the hotel is] keeping the tradition alive,\u201d said Arslanian, though she noted that \u201cthe cats used to have wider [space to roam], more free rein over the hotel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hamchop, as the current feline is known, spends much of his time in a reading nook known as \u201cHamlet\u2019s Corner\u201d where he can watch what\u2019s going on outside on 44th Street.<\/p>\n

Freya<\/p>\n

Freya is spicy but beloved. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

The spicy, small-figured gray cat lived a tough life on the streets of Brooklyn before finding her home in Gowanus\u2019 Brooklyn Glass, an artist-owned studio that offers glass-blowing and neon classes.<\/p>\n

She is the second cat to patrol the space, which Arslanian said \u201chas a tendency to get feisty, independent girl cats.\u201d<\/p>\n

Freya fits the bill. She was one of the hardest cats to photograph for the book due to her elusive nature \u2014 and the staff doting on her. <\/p>\n

\u201cShe\u2019s a funny girl,\u201d said Arslanian.\u00a0\u201cI love that [the staff] loves her so much.\u201d<\/p>\n

Shakira<\/p>\n

Shakira enjoys hiding in the antique shop she calls home. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

There are plenty of hiding spots at Time Galleries antique shop, and this tubby tabby loves to make use of them.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe couldn\u2019t find her for the longest time,\u201d Marttila confessed.\u201cThis photoshoot may have taken a little bit longet.\u201d<\/p>\n

Eventually, he was able to get the Staten Island rescue cat to come out.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had to really entice her with a crinkle ball. And then once I got a treat to her, she was all mine,\u201d said Marttila<\/p>\n

Patience & Fortitude<\/p>\n

Fortitude (left) and Patience were rescued from a hoard of 40 cats. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

Brewery dogs are a dime a dozen, which was one reason Arslanian was excited to feature Wild East Brewing Co\u2019s two cats. Having brewery cats harkens back to the very origins of the specie\u2019s domestication \u2014 cats first began living alongside humans to protect stored grain.<\/p>\n

The two cats are named after the marble lion statues outside of the New York Public Library. Those icons were symbols of the hardscrabble qualities New Yorkers needed during the Great Depression, and Patience, a long-haired ginger, and Fortitude, a gray tabby, have weathered their own trying times. The two were rescued from a hoard of 40 cats.<\/p>\n

Sammy & Hazel<\/p>\n

Sammy is a cat about town in Chelsea. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

Hazel is Sammy\u2019s buddy, not his girlfriend. Andrew Marttila<\/p>\n

The two cats live together at Chelsea Florist, but Arslanian stresses that they\u2019re not an official couple.<\/p>\n

\u201cSammy has girlfriends elsewhere,\u201d she said, noting that he loves to laze about on a mat just outside the shop door and occasionally stroll about outside. <\/p>\n

\u201cA lot of people in the neighborhood know him,\u201d Arslanian said. <\/p>\n

However, Sammy is no fan of the neighborhood\u2019s dogs and the florist\u2019s owner claims he comes from a lineage used to hunt dogs in the woods of Morocco.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"According to Tamar Arslanian, co-author of \u201cShop Cats of New York\u201d (Running Press, out now), her collaborator, Andrew…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":213673,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5122],"tags":[5229,1022,4653,1165,5248,405,403,5226,5225,5228,5227,7926,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-213672","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-books","10":"tag-cats","11":"tag-lifestyle","12":"tag-metro","13":"tag-new-york","14":"tag-new-york-city","15":"tag-newyork","16":"tag-newyorkcity","17":"tag-ny","18":"tag-nyc","19":"tag-pets","20":"tag-united-states","21":"tag-united-states-of-america","22":"tag-unitedstates","23":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","24":"tag-us","25":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115176151944630081","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213672","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=213672"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/213672\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/213673"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=213672"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=213672"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=213672"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}