Thursday Book Feature: The Dog Really did That?
This collection of true stories focuses on rescued dogs but includes many different tales about pooches. In "Geometry Dog," a teacher explains how her canine friend helped her students learn arithmetic. "Jazmine's Journey" is the story of how one rescued dog, abandoned in Wyoming's Red Desert, traveled to her forever home in Canada with the help of strangers. ⠠⠔ "Brains Versus Brawn, the author shares her experiences raising basset hounds.
Most of the stories are written by women, but some have male authors. Some are funny, others touching. The stories begin with quotes, mostly about dogs, by celebrities and others. Proceeds from sales of this book go toward animal rescue.
In the foreword, Dr Robin Ganzert, President and CEO of American Humane, encourages readers to adopt shelter dogs but points out the responsibility involved in caring for a pet, a responsibility I'm still not ready to undertake. I like dogs, and although it's been almost five years since the death of my late husband, who suffered two strokes and whom I took care of during the last six years of his life, I still don't want to care for another living thing.
That said, this book can still be enjoyed, even if you don't want to adopt a dog. Many of the stories made me laugh, and some moved me almost to tears. This book would make a great gift for any dog lover, and you'll support a worthy cause by purchasing it.
Author abbiejohnsontaylorPosted on August 31, 2017 August 29, 2017 Categories Books, Creative Nonfiction, Essays, musingsTags Abbie Johnson Taylor, Animal Rescue, Canines, Chicken Soup for the Soul, Dogs, Heartwarming, Man's Best Friend, Pooches, Unconditional Love2 Comments on Thursday Book Feature: The Dog Really did That?
In a recent post, I mentioned a correspondence course I was taking from the Hadley Institute. I'm now pleased to announce that I've passed the course with an A Plus. For our last assignment, I was instructed to pick three poems, write about them, then compose a poem in the style of one of the poems I picked.
My three chosen poems are: "I Lose My Mind When You Leave the House" by Francesco Marciuliano, "The Lanyard by Billie Collins, and "In Praise of Joe" by Marge Piercy. "I Lose My Mind When You Leave the House" comes from I Could Chew on This, a collection of poems that tell stories from a dog's point of view. This poem provides a humorous look at what can happen when a dog is left at home, reminding me so much of the Irish setter we had when I was a teen-ager. Marciuliano tells this story in one stanza with many short lines.
In "The Lanyard," Billie Collins tells his story in a different way. Using several stanzas with many short lines, he shares a memory of creating a lanyard for his mother when he was a boy at summer camp. He starts in the present. Apparently bored, he's thumbing through a dictionary when he finds the word lanyard, and that gets him to reminiscing. You can click below to hear the author read this poem.
Marge Piercy uses many stanzas containing several short lines, but in this case, she's not telling a story. She's describing the many ways she drinks coffee and extolling its virtues. It inspired me to write a poem about Dr. Pepper, which appears in my own collection, How to Build a Better Mousetrap: Recollections and Reflections of a Family Caregiver.
Now here's a poem I wrote in the style of "I Lose My Mind When You Leave the House" and other poems in Francesco Marciuliano's collection. It was also inspired by a visit to my brother in Florida, who has two dogs, and by something I see every day while walking. You can click below to hear me read it.
during the day while no one's home.
when I speak my mind.
you squeak, as my leash clicks into place.
What's a turkey muffin, anyway?
as that rotten fish head in the alley.
Now that's what I want.
so you don't know where anything is.
You don't see very well, huh?
Well, how about some potato chips?
in the pantry. Open this door.
They're right here on the floor.
one for you, forty for me.
They'll think you ate all the chips. Ha ha.
What's that on the other side of the fence?
I want to chase it.
try to fly over the fence.
Human and stick walk and roll away.
Have any poems ever influenced you? Please tell me about them in the comment field. I leave you now with the hope that someday, you can read a pile of perfect poems.
I first heard this song on the television series MASH, sung by members of a USO troupe while traveling to a gig somewhere in Chorea before encountering enemy fire. One of the singers suffers an appendicitis and is rushed to MASH 4077, where she falls in love with Hawkeye, the chief surgeon portrayed by Alan Alda, but I digress.
After I married Bill, I discovered that this song was one of his favorites. Since he enjoyed shrimp, was interested in boats of all sorts, and had a couple of model ships, I shouldn't have been surprised. I hope you enjoy this song, even if you're not interested in boats or don't like seafood. Have a great Saturday.
This song delivers a powerful message we should all heed.
This week's happy dance is from the legend Bob Marley. He is still inspiring us to get up stand up!
Journalist Bill Bryson, author of A Walk in the Woods and other travel books, grew up in Iowa, then moved to England, where he married and started a family. Later, his family moved back to the U.;S. so his children could be exposed to American culture. Before doing so, he took one last trip through England and parts of Scotland, sometimes on foot but mostly using public transportation. A couple of times, he rented a car.
Notes from a Small Island describes this journey, starting at Dover and ending near Inverness. Bryson describes each town he visited, giving some history and sharing memories of earlier visits. With humor, he reflects on the idiosyncrasies' of the English bus and train system and of the English people in general. He emphasizes his love for England.
I found this book not only informative but also amusing. Bryson's descriptions of English people reminded me of Garrison Keillor'S comic depictions of people in Minnesota. His account of a shopping trip with his wife, while taking a break from his travels, reminded me of James Thurber's short story, "The Secret Life of Walter Mittee, in which the protagonist daydreams to escape his demanding wife. Bryson's descriptions of times when his guidebook misled him reminded me of a trip with my father to Mexico years ago when we had the same problem.
Why waste time, money, and effort on a trip to England when you can read this book instead? Of course things may have changed since Bryson made the original journey, but it's still a good read.