Ugh. Thanksgiving kicked my butt once again. What am I even doing with these posts being at least a day late?! It is what it is, I guess. Sorry about how lackluster the blog has been in general this past week, as well. Thanksgiving, why are you so busy?!

Anyway. It’s time for that certain annual post of mine – Books I’m Thankful For. It’s something I started the first year I started this blog (about the first month in, even), and I think that the name is pretty self explanatory. It’s just me talking about a book or series that I’m really appreciative of or felt was something life changing for me to read.

My post from 2022, the year I started this, was all about Mary Pope Osborne’s Magic Treehouse series. And in my post from last year, I focused on Obert Skye’s Leven Thumps series. This year, the book (or series) I’m gonna gush about is… 🥁🥁 The Warrior Cats books by Erin Hunter (who’s actually five people – or more is it more now?? – under a pseudonym but whatever)!!

Full Disclosure: I’m very aware that Warrior Cats does not really hold up as an adult. These books have got all kinds of issues and weirdness: reused plots, ridiculous written romance (it’s always forbidden love), and Omen of the Stars gets really weird at times. But if you were there in its hay day in the late ’00s you’d get it. There’s just something about these cat books that kept you coming back for more.

So, first off, we have to start with the honest truth. What originally attracted me to these books was the fact that beautiful and colorful cats were the main focus of these series and I wanted a cat very badly growing up but wasn’t allowed to have one. That’s it, that’s what primarily caught my eye about Warrior Cats. It let me live out my fantasy in an extremely overly fantastical way of experiencing cats. And that’s what I liked most about it. Maybe.

Another thing that I really enjoyed about these novels was how. Freaking. Many. There were. When I first got into these books the first two series – The Prophecies Begin and The New Prophecy – were already out completely and even in paperback. The first super edition, Firestar’s Quest, had also been released (and was in paperback as well). Warrior Cats was currently on its third saga, The Power of Three. The first three books of this series had come out (though not all in paperback yet) and the fourth book was poised to come out any time. So yeah, I had a lot of books to occupy my time.

And boy did I spend a lot of time with these books. I’d read them, then I’d reread them, and then I’d reread my favorite parts of them. I even acquired one of the official guide books, Cats of the Clans, and read and reread that. And admired all of the pretty cat artwork, of course. Not to mention, I spent a substantial amount of time on the (unofficial) wiki once I discovered it and these books got me into drawing as well. (They made me want to learn how to draw cats, okay?) And don’t get me started on the fanfiction. This was one of the first book series I read fanfiction for, and was the second thing ever I considered writing fanfiction for. I also owned all of the books and super editions that were out at the time and came out while I was following all of the series.

So yeah, basically, I was obsessed with the Warrior Cats books. For a good two years or so, at least. Then I kind of started losing interest sometime in Omen of the Stars (I told you, it gets weird), and dropped off. Also, I was beginning to suspect a certain cat I Ioved was gonna die and I wasn’t ready to read that. (I ended up being right, btw.) But I never forgot these novels and how they took over my life for a while. And how they filled the void inside myself that desperately wanted to have a cat.

About five years ago, a few Warrior Cats videos started popping up on my YouTube feed and I got back into it a little. I sort of caught up to where the books were currently at (only like how many series there were at the time and the vaguest notions of their plots), and even bought a couple books. Specifically, one of the other super editions, and the second half of Omen of the Stars. Because I’d never finished it, and I kind of wanted to.

I still want to. Because I never did end up reading them and it’s always been something I’ve regretted a little. Like, I’m definitely gonna stop after Omen of the Stars (I’m really not interested in the stuff that comes after), but it feels a little weird leaving it unfinished, you know? I mean, these books were my life (to some degree) for two years. That’s not insignificant. But who knows. Maybe I’ll read them, maybe I won’t.

I didn’t really get into it, but I did like a lot that the novels had to offer, despite the lower points and some of the odd decisions made. I really liked the characters (for the most part), and even adored some of them. Also, I loved the setting and aesthetic of the groups of cats living in the forest, and then later around a lake (but still actually in the woods – just with a body of water in the middle this time). And I really enjoyed the magical aspect of these books too; it added a mystical fantasy aspect to the novels that wouldn’t feel the same without it. (Well more fantastical than cats that fight over territory and have human-like interactions with one another already are.) Someday, I might even do a massive review of all the books I’ve read from this gigantic series. Who knows.

Anyway, even with all the weirdness, the Warrior Cats series was really impactful for me, and I’m really thankful for it for various reasons. I’ll never, ever regret the time I spent with all of these books. And I recommend giving them a shot to any middle grade readers who are interested, but in the same way that I recommended One Piece to people. Because they’re both so ridiculously long at this point. (With Warrior Cats you can stop off much easier, though. You can just read the individual series within the bigger series if you want to. It’s mostly a bunch of books that are simply set in the same universe at this point. You just gotta read them in order.)

So yeah, it’s a bit late (again), but Happy Thanksgiving 🦃🥧 to everyone and anyone who celebrates it! I hope you all enjoyed good food with the ones you love.

What books are you thankful for? What are your favorite novels?

Thank you for reading. I’m always so thankful that anyone reads or follows my little blog at all. I hope you have a wonderful day/night!

See ya ~Mar