When film director Kimberly Warner developed a debilitating neurological disorder mid-life she was forced to trade big screens for balls of wool and digital frames for three-dimensional, analog comfort. Until she was able to adapt and return to her work as a filmmaker, the quiet passing of a needle through wool helped her connect with the simple and profound joy of creating.

Needle felting became a lifeline and the thirteen hairless cat sculptures she created over a period of two years became a microphone for the struggles and insights her conscious mind couldn’t yet articulate. The sculptures speak personally but also collectively to anyone who suffers disability and chronic illness - communicating our longing to be normal, the challenges of being part of a world that doesn’t understand and the need to find a form of self-expression and purpose even when our body makes it nearly impossible.

Each figure took hundreds of hours to sculpt but the satisfaction of creating during the immense chapter of uncertainty brought shape and meaning to her days. This hairless cat series - with their exposed bones and curves - intimately expresses the vulnerability and raw, fragile aliveness that is the truth of who we all are, especially when "our protective furs" have fallen away.

This book offers a very personal and honest look at what it’s like to live with a rare or chronic disorder and how disheartening it can be to chase cures. It is the author/artist’s hope that it might be a companion to those who are searching for a new, empowering perspective on living with adversity.