We've nicknamed our front window area "The Solarium" because of the intense sunshine it gets, especially in the morning. When we first leased the space, we envisioned happy cats in the front window, rolling around and snoozing in the sunbeams, and seeing it really happening never fails to make us smile. (Above, Fitz; Below, Genevieve and Bug)

Hello Friends,

We truly hope you're all doing well and finding things to enjoy and appreciate every day. It's been a bit difficult to get to the finish line with this particular newsletter; we try to use this space to celebrate the positive, but it's been harder to see that recently. In the past week, we've been told to "get a life" when we tried to protect our cats from aggressive behaviors, were threatened by a visit from a Covid-positive person if we didn't give a refund, and received another false, one-star review from a family who missed their cat lounge reservation and wanted a refund (thankfully, the credit card company sided with us when they tried to dispute the charge). We're genuinely interested in improving the day of every person who walks into our space, so it can be hard to not take it personally when people take a bad day out on us or claim that we're a get-rich-quick scheme or scam. We know these people are the minority, and if you're someone who lives nearby and often enjoys our cats in the front window, please consider coming in and introducing yourself. We would love to meet you and hear about your favorite cats or moments you've observed!

On that note, here are some of our best moments from the past week:

• overhearing two children telling their mother that they had "the best time ever!" while exiting the cat lounge
• helping a couple select a queer romance that they could enjoy reading together, which they immediately took to our cafe seating area to start (but kept getting distracted by the antics of our cats in the front window...)
• watching one of our cafe regulars help a new visitor choose a Spring Menu Drink Special (more on those below) and hearing "oh, this is good" after the first sip

In this newsletter, in addition to sharing more of what we love about our eight new(ish) cats, we are happy to announce that we have opened up reservations for the month of June! Once again, they can be made on our website or through our Tock page.

Keep scrolling to learn more about:

• Expanded morning hours
• Watch us on Chronicle
• Our First Independent Bookstore Day
• Our amazing cats!

Happy reading, and we hope to see you soon!

Best,

The Team at A Sanctuary Cafe

Our very silly Billy enjoys the morning sunshine while experimenting with the toy potential of our arbor bench's support beams.

Expanded Morning Hours

We’re excited to announce that we’ve expanded our cafe and bookstore hours:

Monday & Tuesday: Closed

Wednesday, Thursday, & Friday: 8am to 7pm

Saturday & Sunday: 8am to 5pm

If you’ve had the chance to visit us, odds are that our cozy seating area with its floor-to-ceiling view into the cat lounge has been at full capacity. Opening our doors a little earlier each morning has been such a great opportunity for more people to enjoy the view of our cats basking in the morning sun along with some freshly brewed coffee or a new read from our bookshelves! Charles Street has some wonderful, calm mornings that remind us–when we’re able to–to step back from how busy things can be and take a few minutes for ourselves.

That being said, our cats are known to bring the energy at the start of their days! Some of our best climbers are hard at play along our catwalks, while others gather in the front window to watch sparrows along the sidewalk. Best of all (in our opinion) is seeing what superior lounging positions they choose each morning, with the classic loaf and exposed tummy splay being particular favorites!

You may have noticed that whenever Rica is awake and active, our staff has a tendency to pause everything to praise her perfection. If you are lucky enough to catch her in one of these moments, we recommend grabbing a beverage or treat (our Peach Cobbler Chai is shown below) and settling in to enjoy her exquisite Rica-ness.

Below: Getting a good photo of multiple active cats is tricky! Lorelei (left) and Fitz's (right) post-breakfast grooming pause made this one possible, but can you find the two other cats who are (partially) captured in this photo?

Last Chance to Try Our Spring Drink Specials

We had a lot of fun developing our spring drink specials and we can't believe it's nearly summer (which will also have a great drink menu)!

Above: Three of our most popular current drink specials, all featuring MEM tea:

• the Peach Cobbler Chai
• our Sunbeam, featuring French Press lemonade and a rotating selection of tea (pictured here with Crimson Berry)
• the Key Lime Pie Matcha

Also featured: Violet as our monthly macaron special! After considerable discussion, we decided she should be maca's lavender honey flavor.

Below: Bug loves the benches in the front window area and likes to peek in on what's happening in the cafe, but she can be easy to miss if you aren't looking carefully!

We Were on Chronicle!

Chronicle decided to do their very first cat-themed episode and we were lucky enough to be asked to be a part of it. We were in great company, with The Cat Connection and The Odd Cat Sanctuary also featured. Click here to watch our segment!

Our First Independent Bookstore Day!

We’ve had so many exciting and eventful days this past (almost!) one year of being open, but Independent Bookstore Day was particularly special. Not only was it our first Indie Bookstore Day, but it was also the first Metro Boston Indie Bookstore Crawl ever! Uniting with 20 other local independent bookstores truly revealed how much we all benefit from collaboration and how powerful this community is.

We had the most amazing time getting to meet so many wonderful book enthusiasts throughout the month of April and the number of people who came in to celebrate on the 26th astounded us. We loved having the chance to match people with a book from our micro-bookstore’s uniquely curated selection and got some great recommendations from visitors that we can’t wait to read. An added bonus of our multifaceted space is how many pictures of people’s cats we got to see! It is always a treat when visitors share the loveliest and silliest photos of their cats with us. 

We were deeply impressed that 135 people stopped by with 10+ stamps to receive one of our signature letterpress bookmarks and absolutely blown away by the nearly 350 people who completed and submitted their passports. The Boston book community is so passionate and dedicated and we are incredibly grateful to be a part of it!

We can’t wait for next year!

Staff Share Their Favorite Things about Our Wonderful "New Eight"

As we said in our January newsletter, meeting this "New Eight" family group was an incredibly exciting moment, but we may enjoy this new, learning-all-their-quirks phase even more. We know we're preaching to the choir on this, but isn't it amazing how diverse and multi-faceted cat personalities can be?!

Fitz (formerly Fitzwilliam)*

*Oops! The first vet exam confirmed Fitz is female, not male.

Our First Impression (from the January newsletter): A Dashing, Chirpy, Height Aficionado

Five Months Later: Still true, but we've also discovered her extremely affectionate and mischievous sides.

Our Favorite Things about Fitz:

• that face!
• the way she was such a good sister to Theo when he was spending most of his early days hiding (she excels at cuddling and grooming other cats, when she's in the mood)
• the incredibly curious, mischievous streak that the other cats don't always appreciate...
• her bigger-than-necessary jumps to get up to the upper catwalk and her extensive, wiggly setup pre-pouncing
• her very active viewing of birds on TV (literally knocks the TV around)
• the way she puts a paw on your shoulder or leg and gives your face a nuzzle or headbutt in greeting (this can transition to advanced partner yoga positions, including her signature scarf pose)

Lorelei

Our First Impression: A Snuggly, Confident Charmer

Five Months Later: Yep, that's Lorelei!

Our Favorite Things about Lorelei:

• the juxtaposition of her raspy/crunchy meow when she wants be the center of attention and her sweet, trilling dove/pigeon purr once she achieves it
• her Disney Princess Eyes and perfect elven ears
• that she only needs a tiny window of time and space to crawl into a lap
• her out-of-nowhere Gremlin energy moments, and the way she meows and poofs her tail during zoomies
• her superior skills when playing catch with mice toys, especially from underhand tosses to her when she's at the top of the cat tower
• her conviction that all big toys with tails belong to her and should be taken into the retreat for safekeeping (ransom?)

Genevieve (or Genviève, as we think she's a little bit French?)



Our First Impression: A Free-Spirited, Affectionate Super-Athlete

Five Months Later: Still so true!

Our Favorite Things about Genevieve:

• "Genevieve contains multitudes" and everyone on staff has a slightly different, unique dynamic with her
• she may have the very best zoomies, as it can include climbing the full maple tree trunk in our front window (also because of the surprising speed she achieves and her signature bum swing when changing direction)
• her beautiful, thick, vibrantly calico fur
• her devotion to her pillow for sleep, play and socialization
• the way she treats everyone like her very own kittens, including (gently) holding down your hand until she's decided she's finished grooming it (this may include playful nibbles)

Stanley

Our First Impression: Bold, Enthusiastic-About-Everything (Really, Everything)

Five Months Later: Still true. He is both one of the calmest, most confident cats we have ever encountered, and one of the most committed (and silliest!) during playtime.

Our Favorite Things about Stanley:

• his adorable little alien/creature of the woods face and the way his ears tip forward when he's concentrating
• that he does so well with all of the other cats and was the first to integrate with "the Originals" as we worked to introduce everyone
• that our vet team gave him an unprecedented A+ for behavior during his initial exam
• his commitment to monitoring everything, from following us around to overseeing all from his two favorite vantage points: a large, round scratcher at the top of the stairs and a part of the upper catwalk that is directly above that scratcher
• that he's maximum lanky, with truly dramatic Bambi's-first-time-on-ice scrambling moments during play

Theodore ("Theo")

Our First Impression: An Inquisitive, Mischievous and Truly Classic Tabby

Five Months Later: Still mostly true, though he's less likely to get into trouble now that he's established a few favorite spots for lounging and observing.

Our Favorite Things about Theo:

• he's a sweet, playful boy who is friendly with everyone
• his stunning bullseye tabby coat, which looks like butterfly wings
• the special meal spot he's chosen for himself and the way he helps with post-meal dishes
• his transition from hiding in tunnels to now spending most of his time in elevated spots, particularly the top of the house in the front window
• his extra long limbs and tail, which he stretches out to great effect
• that he no longer feels compelled to dispute the title of "annoying little brother" with Simon

Matthias

Our First Impression: An Extra Curious, Wand-Toy-Obsessed, Old Soul

Five Months Later: Even more true as he's gained confidence and made new friends!

Our Favorite Things about Matthias:

• his trajectory from shy boy to one of the most likely to nose-sniff and solicit pets from humans
• his "I want pets" hunch, which includes pointing his nose straight up and his tiny teeth showing
• that he loves love and continues to look out for his family group
• his passion for wand toys and tunnels
• that he's softer than he looks and has just the right amount of chonk (also, the way his thick neck sort of disappears to make his perfect forward stretch somehow even more perfect?)
• "he's just so sweet" and "he's a family man!"

Frederick ("Freddy")

Our First Impression: Gentle-to-Humans, Mighty-Against-Toys 

Five Months Later: Still true, but currently overshadowed by his utterly adorable friendship overtures, particularly towards Tiger and Billy.

Our Favorite Things about Freddy:

• his obsession with coil/spring toys, which includes wildly dashing around after them and running around with one (or two!) in his mouth
• the subtle but gorgeous tabby swirl along his sides
• that he lives for Tiger's top-of-head grooming, but still approaches him respectfully and asks politely
• how much he seeks out and enjoys company (first mostly from cats, but now he also likes to be close to humans in the cat lounge)
• how unbelievably big and dark his eyes can get during playtime

Violet

Our First Impression: Sweet, Petite (and Still Coming Out of Her Shell)

Five Months Later: Still sweet and petite (though also growing quickly), but she's showing us so much more personality!

Our Favorite Things about Violet:

• "Though she be but little, she is fierce" (Shakespeare)
• the special white star on her back and her extra long tail (we measured, and it's the longest in proportion to her body!)
• how quick, fast, clever and smart she already is, and she's only half-grown!
• her growing confidence, including the way she's claimed the bottom of the cat tower as her own private room
• that she's so good at figuring out how to play with other cats and already waits her turn
• her surprisingly squeaky little meow when she wants to play or eat (initially used with other cats, but more and more directed at us)

Newsletter Archives

• May Reservations Are Open, Plus Saturday Is Independent Bookstore Day! - April 24, 2025
• April Reservations and a Short Update - March 27, 2025
• March Reservations & Introducing Special Events - February 23, 2025
• Meet Our Eight New Cats - January 21, 2025
• Hooray for the Holidays! - December 21, 2024
• Cat Lounge Reservation Invitation and Fall Updates - November 2, 2024
• Opening Phases Have Begun! - July 16, 2024
• Construction and Hiring Updates: Part 2 - March 25, 2024
• Construction and Hiring Updates - February 18, 2024
• Major Construction Progress and Opening Update - January 28, 2024
• Now Opening February 2024 - November 3, 2023
• Things Are Coming Together! - July 12, 2023
• Things Are Happening! - April 2, 2023
• New Year, Grand Opening - January 6, 2023
• It’s Officially the Holiday Season! - November 16, 2022
• The Third Newsletter! - October 27, 2022
• The Second Newsletter! - August 29, 2022
• Our First Official Newsletter! - August 14, 2022

Coming Up In Our Next Newsletters

• Our Summer Menu
• Cats! (Always)
• Our First Official Merchandise

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