Leonard (My Life as a Cat)

Leonard (My Life as a Cat) (2021) is a middle grade science fiction novel by Carlie Sorosiak. The novel explores the inner life of an animal with an unexpected angle: An alien accidentally crashes to Earth in the body of a cat. As he tries to find his way back home, he bonds with a human girl named Olive, who also struggles to fit in. Through Leonard’s observations and recollections, the novel explores themes of identity, humanity, and friendship.

Sorosiak is a bestselling author of novels for children and young adults. She grew up in North Carolina and received degrees from UNC-Chapel Hill, Oxford, and City, University of London. She works as a creative writing professor and often writes about animals.

This study guide uses the 2020 e-book edition published by Walker Books, a division of Candlewick Press.

Plot Summary

Leonard is an intelligent, highly advanced alien stuck in the body of a cat. He and his human companion, Olive, speed along in a Winnebago on the way to Yellowstone national park. Soon, Leonard will go back to his alien home and will forget the love he has for Olive.

Leonard recounts the events that led up to the trip to Yellowstone. As is customary for his species, at age 300, Leonard is given the opportunity to visit any planet he wants for a month. Leonard chooses Earth and plans to spend a month as a park ranger in Yellowstone. He studies human life and develops a romanticized picture of life on Earth.

Something goes wrong during his journey—he lands in the ocean off the coast of Hilton Head, South Carolina, and instead of a human form, he finds himself trapped in the body of a cat. Unable to return to his home planet without reaching a designated meeting point in Yellowstone National Park by a specific deadline, Leonard is left stranded in a tree during a storm. Olive, a 12-year-old girl who loves animals, rescues Leonard from the tree and takes him home with her, believing him to be a stray cat.

Olive begins to share details about her life with Leonard. She normally lives in Maine with her mother but is spending the summer in Hilton Head with her no-nonsense grandmother, Norma, with whom she is not yet close. Olive’s father passed away and now her mother has a new boyfriend named Frank, who considers Olive weird and socially inept. Olive struggles to make friends and participate in social activities like Girl Scouts because she worries that Frank is right. Leonard in turn struggles to adjust to his new cat body and the isolation he feels being disconnected from his species’ hive mind. Leonard begins to experience pain and fear; he realizes that while he is in this cat body, he is mortal.

Leonard begins accompanying Olive everywhere. Norma runs a local aquarium and Olive helps take care of the animals with Q, Norma’s quirky, positive employee. As Olive grows closer to Leonard, she wants to adopt him into her family. Leonard goes with Olive to the beach and witnesses other kids making fun of her. Leonard feels guilty about lying to Olive and decides to tell her about his identity and his need to get to Yellowstone. He types out a message on her laptop. She takes a moment to accept this reality but stays up late talking to Leonard and learning about his life through the laptop. Olive agrees to help him get to Yellowstone and offers to help him have any other human experiences he wishes before he goes. Leonard requests a raincoat.

Olive needs Norma to take them to Yellowstone but first Norma must manage the “Save the Sea Turtles” aquarium event several days before Leonard’s pick-up time. Olive takes Leonard on more human outings, taking him to the movies and standing in the ocean with him. Olive tries to broach the topic of Yellowstone with Norma, but Norma rejects the idea. Leonard worries he is stuck on Earth. Leonard decides to try and help Olive while they wait for their chance to travel to Yellowstone. He convinces the penguins at the zoo to bow to Olive, and she cries tears of joy. Leonard wonders if he should stay on Earth with Olive. 

Olive hatches a plan to take Leonard on the train with her all the way to Yellowstone. The night before they are set to leave, Olive learns that her mother has decided to move to California. Her mother and Frank will be there the next day to take Olive away, ruining the Yellowstone plan. That night, Q calls to inform them that the sea turtles are hatching. As they watch baby sea turtles crawl across the beach, Leonard feels connected to life on Earth. Q reveals that he knows Leonard’s secret identity and offers to drive them all to Yellowstone in his motor home. They do not tell Norma about Leonard’s identity, but they convince her to go on a trip with them as they drive Olive to California.

They drive for many hours across the country. Leonard feels increasingly conflicted about leaving. They encounter many delays, including a storm and a flat tire. An owl steals Leonard’s beloved rain jacket and as they chase after it, Olive falls and injures her ankle. As the ambulance comes to take Olive away, Leonard wishes for more time with her. He says goodbye and runs the final distance to Old Faithful; he will fling himself into the geyser and use the upwards force to meet his species and leave Earth’s atmosphere. 

Leonard runs through all the wildness and danger of Yellowstone. Olive and Norma arrive at Old Faithful just as he is about to jump in. Leonard’s species communicates with him telepathically, commanding him to jump and abandon everything he loves about Earth. Leonard realizes that his home is there with Olive and decides to stay.

Leonard wakes up on a snowy day in Maine. Olive told her mom about what Frank said to her and her mom has moved back to Maine without Frank. Leonard is now a part of the family. Olive gives him an umbrella and they stand in the snow together.