The Culinary Adventures of a Brooklyn Bodega Cat

By H.K. Scribnick

Travel the world in search of unique traditions and treats, both human and feline. Join Axel and Rosie, together with their cats Otto and Gidget, on their adventures to six different countries as they savor characteristic foods and absorb fascinating cultures. Our protagonists float down the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy; dunk chunks of baguette in bubbling cheese in Verbier, Switzerland; join a Solstice ceremony in Machu Picchu, Peru; gobble up endless variations of salmon at a buffet in Heberg, Sweden; relish raclette in Vail, Colorado and participate in an 11-course fish extravaganza at a traditional inn in Nikko, Japan. Along the way they take in the sights and soak up new experiences which will change their perspectives forever. "The Culinary Adventures of a Brooklyn Bodega Cat" is a unique approach to instilling curiosity in traveling the world and is presented in an understandable and lighthearted way. Teachers and librarians will also find the book a perfect addition to their lessons and a great way to support students interested in other countries and cultures. And the recipes at the end of each chapter “cater” to all those culinary creatives who want to take these travels to the next level: right into their own kitchens!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Archway Publishing
• Release date: Dec 19, 2023
• ISBN: 9781665753982

H.K. Scribnick

H.K. Scribnick began her writing career by promoting the natural sciences to high school students who often might see the field as intimidating. She then worked in Germany preparing, writing and editing documentation required to conduct clinical trials for the pharmaceutical industry. Later, she became a grant writer for a small non-profit to fund outreach programming for underserved communities. With “The Culinary Adventures of a Brooklyn Bodega Cat”, she has finally been able to transition from very structured to very creative writing. The stories recounted here are based on the memorable travels she and her family have had together. H.K. Scribnick graduated from Vassar College with a B.A. in Biopsychology. She lives in Washington, DC and Vail, Colorado and sadly, does not have any cats.

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Copyright © 2023 H.K. Scribnick.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Archway Publishing

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.

ISBN: 978-1-6657-5397-5 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-6657-5398-2 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2023923135

Archway Publishing rev. date:  12/18/2023

Contents

Chapter 1   The Origin Story

Chapter 2   Otto Goes Deep: Cheese Fondue (Verbier, Switzerland)

Chapter 3   Otto Plunges Into Pizza (Venice, Italy)

Chapter 4   Otto Polishes Off Peruvian Potatoes (Machu Picchu, Peru)

Chapter 5   Otto Sups at the Salmon Buffet (Hegeberg, Sweden)

Chapter 6   Otto Rises to the Challenge: Raclette in the Rockies AND Never Use Beef as a Password (Vail, Colorado)

Chapter 7   Otto Falls For a Fellow Feline (Nikko, Japan)

About the Author

For my parents, Doris and Sanford, who instilled

in me a love of reading and the beauty of fiction to

transport us into the world of our imaginations.

To write is to prevent forgetting

Annie Ernaux

2022 Nobel Prize in Literature

Seven is the number I will always be loving…

Karameh, Wael. A Little Story: Number 7 *** *** *. 2009.

Poem Hunter, www.poemhunter.com

CHAPTER 1

The Origin Story

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H E WAS BORN shortly after his sister at 7 a.m. on July 7, 2021, the progeny of some alley cats living beneath Mr. Coco’s Bodega on the corner of Vanderbilt and Myrtle in the heart of Brooklyn Heights. Their parents had settled in a few days earlier, sensing that their brood would be arriving soon. (You might wonder what a bodega is and I’m here to clear things up: In New York City, where Brooklyn Heights is lo cat ed, a bodega is a neighborhood convenience store and, in this case, there was also a small counter for breakfast, lunch and snacks.) The cats had created a cool and comfortable environment and hoped no one would discover their hideaway, forcing them to leave before the litter was born.

Actually, Mr. Coco’s Bodega was managed by Mr. Woo who had leased the small corner store a few months earlier after receiving official permission to immigrate to New York City. Mr. Woo was thrilled to be in the United States, welcoming the chance to leave the small town of Icheon in South Korea, just outside the capital city of Seoul. His sister Mina also resided in the United States having married an American citizen she met on a college exchange program. Mina described the borough of Brooklyn to Mr. Woo as a vibrant, unique community within the vast, electrifying community of New York City. She believed her brother would quickly integrate into American society by managing the bodega. At the time, Mr. Woo could never have imagined he’d soon be sharing the shop with some additional residents.

Indeed, the bodega turned out to be the ideal place to begin building his new life in the United States. Mr. Woo swiftly ingratiated himself within the neighborhood and the sidewalk in front of the shop became a favorite spot for residents to congregate: from 7 a.m., when Mr. Woo lifted the heavy metal jalousie, to 7 p.m., when he was obliged to close shop because of the past year’s pandemic. He had set up seven small tables outside the bodega at which everyone could feel safe and left the front door and big picture window wide open so he could enjoy the noises and smells of the City while busy at work.

On this particular day in July, Mr. Woo had been a bit sluggish coming down from his upstairs apartment to set up the big coffee machine in the bodega. You could almost predict that it would need to be refilled at least seven times by about eleven a.m. But it was only 6:07 a.m. on this glorious summer morning and very quiet when he became aware of what he thought were tiny mews coming from somewhere beneath the thin floorboards at the back of the shop…

It had recently occurred to Mr. Woo that, when emptying the bodega’s trash in the dumpsters behind the shop, there had been what appeared to be, a small trail of shredded cheese leading directly into a narrow crack in the foundation. His initial assumption had been that someone from the pizzeria next door was a bit careless with the trash and had perhaps dropped some bits of parmesan along the way. So now, as he placed the Back in 7 minutes sign in the front door of the bodega, and made his way into the rear alley towards the bins, he suspected something else might be going on under the floorboards.

Mr. Woo quickly dropped down onto his scrawny knees; he was a slight man