Newbie cat owner questions...

[Perch]

We are moving soon and for the first time ever I will live away from a busy road and can have a cat!! I have a few questions though if anybody with experience can help?
The best book that will tell me everything I need to know about cats, also about their health, minor ailments, spaying etc
Do all cats catch birds and can you mitigate this somehow, except for having a house-cat?

Do they always use a litter tray? I would prefer if they do but not sure if you can ‘train’ them? I trained my dog to do all his business in one place...
The only experience I have of cats is my friends’ super cuddly cat who is attached to her lap and my aunts’ lovely farm cats, but I’m sure there is a vast middle ground between the two!
Do I sound like a complete idiot 😳
I dream about a beautiful Maine Coon, anybody have experience with them?
Our new garden will be 1/3 acre, urban. Is that enough space or will the cat want to roam further than than?
Thanks and apologies for the silly questions.

I will answer the litter tray one. I've just got lumbered with a litter of 5 kittens. I think they are 4-5 weeks old. First day I put kitten food down for them, I put a litter tray next to them. They have all used it religiously every time. However, sometimes you will get an objectionable sod of a cat who will pee and crap anywhere/everywhere. They are cats!

Oh and me too on a Maine Coon. Strong characters, I hear.

Mine couldn't catch a cold. He brought me a leaf once (he was stray for 4 years and goes outside)
He always uses a tray as he won't wee outside
Some cats roam, some don't, really does depend on the cat
The best things I bought are a flat cardboard scratch box, a Skyeskyns sheepskin pet mat and an igloo type bed. He is my first cat so I was petrified for months I would somehow accidentally kill him but he's trained me up well

So many things are dependent on the individual cat! Nearly all do know how to use a litter tray as their mother teaches them such things, but whether they prefer that to the great outdoors varies - my friend has 2 cats, one has to be bursting before he goes indoors and the other will come in specially to do her thing in the litter tray.

Some are mighty hunters, some are useless. With the same friend as above, his boy (who I think may well have some Bengal in him) is a great hunter, then the girl brings the remains into the house. My boy runs from spiders, his sister kills them whatever size they are (indoor only, so no opportunity for anything larger).

The only way you can have any surety on the personality of a cat is to get an adult, preferably from a rescue, as they will have assessed the cat and most match the cat to potential owners who will suit them.

Regarding roaming, again it's very dependent on the individual cat. Some don't like the great outdoors at all, many like their "home patch", and some range for miles!