Lilian Braun

Lilian Jackson Braun was born in either 1913 or 1916, depending upon which source you believe, and at the early age of 2 wrote her first poem, which read, "Mother Goose is up in the sky, and these are her feathers coming down in my eye." She began her career writing sports poetry for the Detroit News as a teenager. She then joined the Detroit Free Press, writing articles on subjects similar to those her fictional hero Qwilleron tackled during his tenure at the Daily Fluxion in her celebrated "The Cat Who..." novels- subjects such as antiques, interior decorating, architectural preservation, cooking, and art. She eventually became editor and stayed at the paper for 30 years.

She published three novels from 1966 to 1968 to critical acclaim, but then disappeared from the publishing scene for 18 years. In 1986, Berkley Publishing Group re-introduced Lilian Braun to the public eye with her original paperback novel, The Cat Who Saw Red.

The main characters in her novels are two Siamese cats, Koko and Yum Yum. They own a gentle man named James Qwilleron who along with them solve mysteries involving suspicious deaths and other events. But they do it without the sex and violence that Braun disliked. Braun states "people are simply tired of all the blood. I write what is called the classic mystery." She goes on to say "not all mystery fans may like cats, but all cat fanciers seem to like mysteries." This is indeed true if you know the feeling of being "owned" by a cat or cats. Braun lives in North Carolina with her husband, actor Earl Bettinger, and of course two Siamese cats!