G’day, good denizens of Moab! Mitä kuuluu? (That’s “How are you?” in Finnish.) I’m doing quite well, though I seem to have permanent nap-inducing literary jet lag. Why, you might ask? Because you lovely library patrons had me travelling non-stop this summer for Grand County Public Library’s 3rd annual “How Far Can Cosmo Go?” challenge!
Library patrons took me (or rather, a bookmark featuring my fantastic feline face) to 11 different states, and even, as you may have guessed from my greeting, all the way to Australia and Finland! I traveled broadly in the literary realm as well, dabbling in the afterlife with The Egyptian Book of the Dead, ambling above the Arctic Circle in Elin Anna Labba’s The Home of the Drowned, traipsing through Tuscany in Andrew Sean Greer’s Villa Coco, and sauntering through space in Aliette de Bodard’s A Fire Born of Exile.
This year, I really took the “trot” in globetrotting literally by cheering at horse races in Iowa, relaxing at Grandma’s horse farm in Pennsylvania, and watching amazing equine demonstrations at Breyerfest in Kentucky. You might even catch me saying neigh instead of meow one of these days!
I also explored many mountains and lakes in the west, and even helped catch a 20-inch trout. What a feast! And would you believe it? I visited the northernmost drivable point in the U.S. on the Beaufort Sea in Alaska. That’s the farthest north I’ve ever been in my travels, even farther north than my wonderful trip to Iceland last year.
Library ambassador that I am, I made friends with a few felines along the way, of course, including Lucy, close to home, and a tuxedo mini-me Plumlee all the way up in Maine. Plumlee took me to Portland Head Light, Maine’s oldest lighthouse and inspiration for Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s poem “The Lighthouse.”
As I close out another amazing summer, I’d like to quote this poem, grateful for everyone who lent me their adventures, bridging continents and book covers “to bring man nearer unto man!” (And to bring cat nearer unto cat!) Many thanks for shining a light, fellow travelers! Until next time, Cosmo the Library Cat is signing off.
