First published 2025
Courtney Gustafson just wanted to survive. She moved into a rental house in Tucson's Poets Square neighborhood during the pandemic, struggling with poor mental health, a low-paying job, and a new relationship. The house came with an unexpected burden: thirty feral cats. Courtney initially resisted spending her limited time and money on the animals, but their condition left her no choice. Ribs showed through matted fur. Kittens appeared in her driveway. Pleading eyes followed her everywhere. She began feeding them and created TikTok and Instagram accounts to document cats like Mushroom Risotto, Bubbles, Goldie, and Sad Boy. The social media following grew large enough to help save her home. Courtney discovered the overwhelming scope of animal rescue work and the neglect plaguing neighborhoods nationwide. She climbed through trash-filled homes and walked dark alleys with food bowls. The work toward an ethics of care helped her pierce a personal darkness she had carried for years. The book explores how individual efforts to help can create community even when larger systems fail spectacularly.
Genres: animals, contemporary, non-fiction, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, personal-growth
Setting: Poets Square, Tucson
Period: Pandemic
256 pages · Hardcover · Crown
Content warnings: mental-illness