About the story
A cat story set in Galway, Ireland
Goober, The Cat That Wasn't Mine is a novel by Wagner Rosati Carvalho. A stray cat keeps appearing at a glass door in rainy Galway, and every week he wears a different collar. Whose cat is this?
The Galway setting
After a pandemic year back home in Brazil, Daniel returns to Ireland with a bass guitar and starts again in Galway. Between wet streets, buskers on Shop Street, evenings by the docks and lit windows in a row of terraced houses, a tabby with golden eyes decides to visit. The story is a love letter to Galway and to the West of Ireland, seen through the eyes of someone learning to call it home.
Who will love this book
Cat lovers
A golden-eyed tabby who belongs to everyone and no one, and a mystery told through his collars.
Families and younger readers
A warm, gentle story about kindness, friendship and letting an animal choose you.
Living abroad
Loneliness, belonging and the small connections that turn a new country into home.
Stories set in Ireland
Galway rain, lit windows, music on the streets and a neighbourhood with a secret.
Film, animation and screen rights
Goober, The Cat That Wasn't Mine is a character-driven story inspired by a real cat, with a strong visual world set in Galway, Ireland. It explores belonging, living abroad, community and the bond between people and animals. Producers, animation studios, publishers and literary agents interested in adaptation, translation or publishing rights are welcome to get in touch.
Reader questions
Where does the story take place?
In Galway, on the west coast of Ireland. Rainy terraced streets, Shop Street with its buskers, the docks and a quiet neighbourhood where everybody seems to know the same cat.
Is Goober a real cat?
Yes. The story was inspired by the real Goober, a tabby who visited the author in Galway. You can follow him on Instagram at @cat_goober.
Who is the book for?
Cat lovers, readers who enjoy a gentle mystery, families and younger readers, and anyone who has moved abroad and had to find home again.
Is it an immigrant story?
Yes. Daniel, a designer from Brazil, returns to Ireland after a pandemic year back home and starts again in Galway. A cat with a different collar every week slowly changes his life.
Where can I buy the book?
Goober, The Cat That Wasn't Mine is available on Amazon in paperback.