Published Jan 12, 2026
Cupboard Maker Books / Facebook.com
As I walk into a South-Central Pennsylvania bookstore with a vibrant, colorful painted mural showing books and cats on the storefront, I see another inner entrance door covered with “Please Don’t Let the Cats Out!” signs. This safety measure protects the beloved entourage of five resident cats – plus cats available for adoption from a local rescue – from escaping the place they happily call home.
At Cupboard Maker Books, shoppers can browse more than 125,000 new and used titles on the shelves of the 6,500-square-foot store in Enola, near the Pennsylvania state capital of Harrisburg. But many visitors come mainly to see the store’s five famous resident cats: Odin, Annika, Nash, Princess Buttercup, and Mouse. And some visitors end up adopting a cat or kitten that comes from a local rescue, Loving Care Cat Rescue, and quickly attracts potential adopters at the store; more than 290 felines have been adopted from the store.
“They go nuts over the cats, like we just gave them Taylor Swift concert tickets,” owner Jason Haring says as I meet the felines, each of whom has a personalized business card!
“Some customers are here for books, and some for cats,” says Jason, who co-owns and manages the store with his wife, Michelle. “It’s been a family of book lovers … and they all get along. Not everyone is here for books, and not everyone is here for cats.”
As for me, I dig both books and cats, so I could spend all day here.
The Cast of Cat Characters
Cupboard Maker Books / Facebook.com
Princess Buttercup, a Siamese, is super friendly and likes hanging out on the counter. Snowy white Odin, who was found dirty and foraging for food by a dumpster, is also loving and friendly. There’s Nash, a black and white cat who loves walking up the ramp and strutting over the store on the catwalk. As for Mouse, he got a bit spicy after a few years living there full time and now lives with his humans, but he still makes occasional appearances at Cupboard Maker Books.
The dynasty of bookstore cats dates back to July 2011, when the store rescued a cat named Creamsicle, an orange tabby with white. He was found in a Jeep parked at a business, with poor cats in cages baking under the hot sun in the back of the car. Someone called 911 and the police broke the window to rescue the cats. Jason offered the cat for adoption at his bookstore, but the cat fell in love with him, so the feline stayed. Creamsicle liked to jump onto Jason’s shoulders, which earned him the nickname “The Shoulder Cat.” Sadly, Creamsicle died in 2024.
The sophomore Cupboard Maker Books cat was Squeekie, a Siamese cat who belonged to a friend who wasn’t home much and wanted the cat to have more attention. As is typical of the Siamese, Squeekie was very vocal and he would spend up to 20 minutes a day talking to people from up on the catwalk. Squeekie was a terrible mouser but loved a good paintbrush.
Squeekie lived at the store for eight years and sadly died in 2021, but Squeekie’s spirit lives on through three books published about him: The First Nine Lives of Squeekie the Bookstore Cat, written by the cat’s friends; The Second Nine Lives of Squeekie the Bookstore Cat, written by local professional authors; and Squeekie Celebrates 20 Years of the Cupboard Maker Books, a mix of both stories from the first two books and new stories.
Cupboard Maker Books / Facebook.com
Zak, another beautiful Siamese, loved attention. He only lived at the bookstore for two years before dying from cancer in 2023. All the store’s beloved cats who have crossed over to the Rainbow Bridge still have pictures and bios on Cupboard Maker’s website.
Odin came to Cupboard Maker Books after Zak died. The fluffy white cat was found covered in dirt and fleas by a dumpster, and he came to the bookstore through the rescue. He was available for the adoption, but “he loved the bookstore, and we love him,” Jason says.
Another resident cat, Annika, is known for being a grumpy cat. The fluffy Himalayan cat came from a neighbor who passed away and had no family to take in her beloved cat. Kids often ask to get their pictures taken with this 15-year-old queen cat, who doesn’t let her humans brush her and has to be shaved in the spring. Annika’s human servants ghost-wrote a book called The Very, Very Bad Misadventures of Annika the Reluctant Bookstore Cat. You can follow Annika’s extracurricular backpacking adventures on the store’s Instagram and Facebook pages.
Mouse, a brown tabby and white fluffy cat, was born at Cupboard Maker Books during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. A friendly black stray cat had come to the store and the owners made an appointment to get her spayed, but then the world shut down. That cat turned out to be pregnant and gave birth to five babies, including Mouse!
As a way to cheer themselves and customers during the depressing pandemic shutdown, the staff posted frequent pictures and videos of the mother cat named Bellatrix and her kittens. The bookstore staff opened a back room in the store for Bellatrix to raise her kittens safely, and that room is now the cats’ station for food, litter boxes, sleep, and privacy when they need an escape.
Cupboard Maker Books / Facebook.com
Mouse became aggressive with a visiting toddler once, so he moved to Jason’s and Michelle’s cabin but visits his old home periodically. He also is an adventure cat who does backpacking and walks on a harness outdoors. Mouse is the subject of three books: Mouse the Bookstore Kitten: The Beginning, Mouse’s Adventures: Year One, and Prince Fluffytail Chases a Dragon.
After Mouse moved, Cupboard Maker Books acquired Nash, a rescued cat who was found in an abandoned trailer. You’ll probably find him up above you on the catwalks, but if not, be sure to give him scratches behind his ears and under his chin!
Princess Buttercup, a sleek Siamese found walking the streets, has been purrfect since the day she arrived at the bookstore with the ideal temperament. She is sweet and loving but not too suspicious of people, Jason says.
Cupboard Maker Books is a “really cool bookstore” with the bright mural, the wide selection of books, and of course, the furry ambassadors who make the store feel homey, Jason says. Cats also serve a practical function as a deterrent to mice, who like to chew on paper.
“Books and cats are magical here; there’s just something about them,” he says. “Books are great and cats are great … it gives people an incredibly warm feeling.
“The bookstore cats are wonderful,” Jason says. “They bring us a ton of attention. People love them, and we love them.”
You can buy the books about Mouse, Squeekie and Annika from Cupboard Maker Books here.
