YMMV / Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats

• Adaptation Displacement: Admit it: half of you only know about this book because of Cats (or, more likely, because you need an explanation as to why Cats makes so little sense).
• Alternative Character Interpretation: Some readers believe that Macavity isn't really doing anything wrong, but is being used as a scapegoat or patsy by the real thieves.
• Can't Un-Hear It: Similar to Adaptation Displacement above, once you have seen the musical you will be unable to read the poems without hearing the music.
• Fair for Its Day: Yes, Growltiger's Last Stand uses the Ch word, but the Siamese are obviously the heroes, in an era when Yellow Peril was a common trope.
• Hilarious in Hindsight: The pirate Growltiger getting taken out by (stereotypically) Asian Siamese cats came out long before "pirate vs. ninja" was a thing.
• Magnificent Bastard:
  • "Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer": The titular Mungojerrie and Rumpleteazer are a duo of highly efficient cat burglars, committing various thefts without being caught. Whenever one of their crimes is discovered, people realize that one of the cats is responsible — and that there's nothing at all to be done about that.
  • "Macavity: The Mystery Cat": Macavity, aka the "Hidden Paw" or "The Napoleon of Crime" is an elusive master criminal, who is so notorious that other notable criminal cats such as Mungojerrie and Griddlebone are considered mere agents of his. Whenever one of his crimes is discovered and the investigators reach the scene, not only is Macavity not there, but he also has an alibi for whatever time it took place, with one or two to spare.

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