World Book Day 2020: Explaining Ray Bradbury's Love of Cats, Plus DIY Projects to Entertain Your Feline Friends!

For those following along at home—and if you’re not at home, what gives?!—we at the Museum of Pop Culture are pumped to celebrate Ray Bradbury 100^th birthday this year! Of course, Bradbury is the beloved, award-winning author—and MoPOP Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame inductee—of Fahrenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles. The Illustrated Man, Bradbury’s classic book of short stories, serves as the focal point of our newly-launched book club, where through a series of virtual events and activities over the next month we'll pay tribute to Bradbury’s futuristic thinking, his ability to build tension and suspense, and his examination of how technology could both serve and destroy us.

Bradbury's work is considered a cornerstone of science fiction, but what some people don’t know—and what may be Bradbury's most important characteristic—is that he loved cats. He wrote poetry about cats and even centered one of his most famous short stories, The Cat's Pajamas, on them. There’s a lot of cat literature out there, and many consider a cat a must-have companion and muse for writers; Nnedi Okorafor has Perwinkle Chukwu the Cat, Ursula K. Le Guin has Pard, and a whole slew of literary writers agree that if you’re going to be a great writer, you should probably get a cat!

And if you love cats as much Bradbury did, why not consider creating some do-it-yourself cat toys with all the newfound time you have on your hands? Or, you could donate your toys to a local shelter like our partners up in Shoreline, Whisker City. The kitties need us now more than ever!

Here's three DIY cat-toy projects to consider while you're staying home and staying safe:

It's time to utilize all those extra wine corks you have lying around (no judgement!). This cat toy is a great, simple one that your cat will love, and it only requires a few other bits you might have on hand.

Or, try your hand at one of these slightly more complex toys your cat will love to bat around.

And, when your cat is tuckered out from playtime, they will love cuddling up on this “no sew” cat bed.

Finally, if you’re really more of dog person, I'll throw you a bone, so to speak. Here's a look at Molly, Stephen King's Corgi.

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