Studies in the Art of Rat-Catching


Read by Clive Catterall

(4.8 stars; 38 reviews)

This book is often described as an instruction manual on the subject of rat-catching. It does indeed contain a good deal about rats, ferrets and dogs, but it is much more than that. Barkley fills the book with humour, sharp observation, and his sheer joy of living in the countryside. The framework of the book is indeed a course by fictional rat-catcher Bob Joy, who suggests that rat-catching might be a suitable alternative career for boys at Eton, Harrow and the other major English public schools. We follow Bob as he takes us through some typical days working at both rat catching and rabbit catching using dogs and ferrets.

Barkley adds in more sly digs at the public school system, stories about dogs, stories about country folk, and more stories about dogs. A glorious hodge-podge of a book. (Clive Catterall) (3 hr 0 min)

Chapters

Preface and Introduction 8:23 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 01 13:25 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 02 17:47 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 03 23:54 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 04 17:55 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 05 11:03 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 06 16:49 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 07 15:51 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 08 17:14 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 09 17:15 Read by Clive Catterall
Chapter 10 20:45 Read by Clive Catterall

Reviews

Not what I expected


(5 stars)

I started listening to this just as a sort of joke and out of curiosity, thinking I would only try a few minutes of it. It is actually very pleasant to listen to. Probably not pleasant for the rats and the rabbits involved but as for me I spent a lovely day in my mind rambling over fields and woods and coastlines. It almost made me want to take up rat catching myself. Mr. Catterall does a beautiful job narrating as usual. For anyone who is wondering, this is technically a work of fictional non-fiction with a helping of satire. It rather defies being categorized.

Studies in the Art of Rat-Catching


(4 stars)

<i>Studies in the Art of Rat-Catching </i> is a forgotten book, but in an unusual way. It has an entry at <a href="http://neglectedbooks.com/?p=767" rel="nofollow">The Neglected Books</a>, and it's available in a perfect narration by LibriVox volunteer <a href="https://archive.org/details/studiesartofratcatching_1611_librivox" rel="nofollow">Clive Catterall</a>, so not totally forgotten. More so, it was the basis for Crispin H. Glover's 1999 reinterpretation <i>Rat Catching</i> which had modest success, though few seem to have gone back to read the original. There is much to untangle here, and for that I leave it to the reader to discover the joys of the hunt. This is a delightful ramble.

A gentle tale


(5 stars)

Best not be deceived, this story is as giving as it is gentle. You will find comfort here.

Excellent Book


(5 stars)

The reader did an excellent job. I loved the stories. Almost makes me want to switch careers.

Tongue in cheek fun


(5 stars)

very well read. Content is interesting but written in spirit of fun. love it.