** Big thanks to Kristen Ludwigsen of Mindbuck Media for providing an e-book ARC**
Book Title: A Dog of Many Names (ARC)
Author: Douglas Green
Publisher: Circuit Breaker Books
Number of Pages: 176
Genre: animals, fiction
Release Date: July 6th 2021
Publicity: Mindbuck Media
Favorite Quotes:
“…Something was happening to her brain as well. Before this, she’d always been about someone else-her mother, or a human family, or the man and his pack. But this was an older feeling, about herself. Her own wants and needs were all she answered to. But still, it felt like a connection to something else.”
“She wondered if this was what happened with the squirrel’s life energy. Had she taken it into herself?”
“And since dogs don’t get to choose their lives, she took a breath and relaxed into what she liked about this newness, and let the oldness go, until the time it might return”.
“But the eyes show her age and wear, more pain-drenched wisdom than her two years should know.”
“You can see, she’s had some of her joy crushed out. But still, she’s got a chance.”
“…that being alone wasn’t going to end, that she had been abandoned, thrown away, unwanted. And that never again would she have her crate, her people, her food or water bowl…”
“It seemed to her that she could trust humans while they spoke in such tones, but it was best to stay aware that their behaviors would change when their tones did.”
“She risked being hated or loved, being abandoned or protected, having to let someone in or fight someone who wanted to kill her… Life meant that. Life meant wanting to live. And wanting to live meant…”
Authors note:
“A DNA test explained her looks. But what had created all these oddities?”
Goodreads Synopsis:
Born a runt, Rascal is destined to be an underdog. Despite what looked like an unbreakable bond with the daughter of the family who bred her, Rascal’s devotion is discarded when the mother loses her job, forcing the family into a financial crisis. Bitter and resentful toward a dog they can no longer afford to keep and who was never really wanted, the family throws out the young dog like garbage. Driven out to the country and left roadside, Rascal has nothing but a few pieces of kibble to help her survive the night. Abandoned and alone, Rascal must learn to fend for herself and embark on a harsh and dangerous journey through coyote terrain in the mountain wilderness of Southern California. Along the way, she meets new families and strangers and is given many names. But will she ever settle with one family and one name? A Dog of Many Names is a courageous story of survival, seen through the eyes of a scared and desperate dog who just wants to love, be loved, and be given one last name.
My Review
5/5 stars
Thank you again to Kristen Ludwigsen of Mindbuck Media for sending an e-copy to me.
What an absolutely incredibly well written book! I was very excited to be offered the chance to review this book since I love animals. My initial thoughts on the synopsis was comparing the dogs search for a permeant home and to be loved and cared for to children who end up abandoned themselves. This book gives great insight into what a rescue dog may go through in their previous experiences and how these experiences can impact how they behave in their current situations.
Dogs will unconditionally love the humans taking care of them. It was heartbreaking to see the shepherd unconditionally love those taking care of her, especially those that mistreated her. She slowly ends up having no choice but to take care of herself and not trust humans, even those who would try to genuinely help her. This can easily be compared to humans as well. One can trust others unconditionally and yet have the floor “kicked out from underneath” causing mistrust in others. It is very challenging to try to trust others when most of your past experiences have been that of mistrust.
I loved how unique the author made the chapter titles. Since the book is called “A Dog of Many Names,” the dog is given a different name in each chapter based on who she is with and what she experiences. I liked the fact that the author dedicated this book to his own rescue shepherd who had been with two previous owners who simply didn’t want her. Green, the author, said that it took a bit of time for her to learn to trust him due to her past experiences. He said since she obviously couldn’t verbalize what she was feeling/what she went through, he had to do his part to observe her, to accept and understand her quarks.
I would highly recommend “A Dog of Many Names” by Douglas Green (releasing July 6th, 2021) to those who are animal lovers and those who enjoy different tales of survival.
** Share in the comments if you yourself have a rescue animal and the best thing about them**
My family and I adopted our own rescue dog when she was just 2 months old. The shelter had no background information on her and where she came from. We had to do our part and work really hard with her since we later on, through a DNA test, found out she was mostly Belgian/German shepherd. In working hard with her, she learned to trust us 100%. Since she was about 5 years old, she has been working as a reading therapy dog. A reading therapy dog are dogs that children can read to. Reading to a dog calms down the students so it makes reading easier for them.
Living in a World of Book Quotes 