In “Mewsings: My life as a Jewish Cat, ” the beloved Ketzel pontificates, in rhyme, on what it takes to be a devout calico in a religious household, especially during the High Holidays. Whether chasing after spinning dreidels—and potato latkes—during Hanukkah, or taste-testing gefilte fish prior to Passover, or simply observing Jewish life in Iceland & New Zealand, Ketzel in her musings gives her own Yiddishe Mamma a five-meow rating. Author/narrator Greta Beigel was raised in an Orthodox Jewish household in Johannesburg. A child prodigy pianist, she earned a Licenciate Diploma in Piano Performance from the University of South Africa and was awarded UNISA’s prestigious overseas scholarship. She studied with renowned pedagogue Aube Tzerko in Los Angeles. She went on to become a music journalist, working as an arts editor and staff writer for more than a decade at the Los Angeles Times. She has contributed on the arts to the New York Times. She enjoys writing about pets and her work has appeared in Animal Voices and Cat Fancy magazine. She belongs to the Cat Writers’ Assn. Michael Hoppe is a GRAMMY Award-nominated composer with an extensive background in pop and classical music. His music has been featured on HBO’s “The Sopranos,” the Oprah Winfrey Show, Michael Moore’s documentary “Sicko” and the short, “Eyes of the Wind,” that reached the Oscar nomination short list. His 2010 release “Tapestry” is garnering critical acclaim. Hoppe’s music has earned him several gold and platinum records. The GRAMMY Award-nominated CD “Solace,” was featured in Clint Eastwood’s documentary, “Flags of our Fathers.” Hoppe scored the short film, “Nous Deux Encore,” the Best Score winner at the International Monaco Film Fest. Hoppe previously founded InterConnection Resources, a music business consultancy. He also was a senior executive at PolyGram responsible for signing to the label diverse talents such as Vangelis, Kitaro, The Who, Jean-Michel Jarre and ABBA. Cover Cat: Comet; photograph by Judith Hirsch, Ashland, Ore.