Chapter 19 - One Good Dog

A few weeks ago Dave and I were to celebrate our anniversary with a trip to Asheville, North Carolina. Our grandson is in school there and we figured we'd take the opportunity to visit a place neither of us has been since childhood. It was going to be a quick trip for me as I had a work commitment on Saturday (more about that next week). Things didn't quite work out as planned as our German Shepherd, Shadow, got very sick (gastrointestinal but y'all don't need to know the gory details) and we decided we couldn't leave her for our pet sitter to deal with. Shadow is 12 years old and we were having some serious end of life discussions. After a pricey trip to the vet, it was determined that she just had some sort of bug. We had a lovely dinner at The Brentwood Wine Bistro and the next day Dave headed off to Asheville.

Sad about no Asheville trip for me but grateful we still have our sweet girl with us, I started thinking of animal books. I have a personal policy against reading books about animals as they usually make me sad but, here are a few which I've actually read!

All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot - Herriot was a veterinary surgeon and writer who wrote about his experiences as a vet in a farming community. The series was wonderful but All Creatures is the first in that group. Sometimes happy, sometimes sad, the stories celebrate farm life with a quirky cast of characters both human and animal.

Water For Elephants by Sara Gruen - No animals were killed in the writing of this book. Gruen's story is about a young boy who runs away to join the circus and the people he meets therein. A good tale with good guys and bad guys but, best of all, a happy ending!

Dewey the Library Cat by Vicki Myron & Bret Witter - This true story is about Dewey (named after the Dewey Decimal System) found in the library return box as a kitten. The librarian took him in and he developed some good and bad habits as the "library cat". A good read but cats get old and ....I don't have to tell you the rest.

Seabiscuit by Laura Hillenbrand - Another true story, Hillenbrand does a great job of telling you the tale of an improbable horse paired with a down on his luck jockey. She also does a great job of outlining the social issues of the depression and post-depression eras.

Charlotte's Web by E.B. White - White was one of the co-authors of the writing manual The Elements of Style but is probably best know by children for this book. The story is about a pig Wilbur and his friend Charlotte, a barn spider. Charlotte's clever interventions keep Wilbur from being slaughtered. A good read for both children and adults!

Do you have a favorite book that features an animal (or two)? Let me know!