Stacey Yu's first novel, Kitten, is a peculiar, endearing fable about a young woman who identifies with her boyfriend's cat as she works to overcome codependency issues with him and her mother.
Chinese American Katie is a recent college graduate in Manhattan. Her work-study job has ended--leaving her with less than $50 in her bank account--and her roommate keeps reminding her the utilities payment is overdue. When Katie's boyfriend, James, invites her to stay at his parents' second home by the ocean for two weeks, it presents an opportunity to delay her job search. James is white and four years older, comes from money, and has a corporate job. That privilege cushions her, too. When he learns about her rental crisis, he encourages her to move in with him.
Katie grew up the cosseted only child of a single mother. James is her first boyfriend, and the first time she sees the ocean is with him. James's family pet, Silver, is also the first cat she meets. Katie is "struck by the intensity of my affection for her"--somewhere between maternal instinct and envy of the cat's comfort and security. Katie starts to almost imitate Silver, such as by lapping at a bowl of milk and licking James during foreplay.
Yu maintains the uncomfortable ambiguity of the central relationships as literal realities and psychological explanations coalesce. That Katie's estranged mother's nickname for her is "Kitten" connects the novel's major elements. A cross between If You Love It, Let It Kill You by Hannah Pittard and Rental House by Weike Wang, this debut is an offbeat charmer. --Rebecca Foster, freelance reviewer, proofreader, and blogger at Bookish Beck