I love dogs and I love books, so the combination is always beguiling to me. I have recently published my third book of dog art Rescue Dogs, I asked people to send me photos of their rescues, and as I now realise, all rescues come with a story, so they came with an extraordinary collection of stories about where they came from, how they were found, character sketches and descriptions of their idiosyncrasies. I realised that some of my favourite books have dogs heroes, there are 5 here but there could have been many many more.
This was and still remains one of my favourite books of all time.
From the age of about 8, I used to read it every year, and it remained as thrilling every time.
The pink cover and black and white illustrations are perfect. The story is funny, sad, clever, implausible, very exciting, and has some of the best characters in fiction, Cruella de Vil of course being one.
The ingenuity of Pongo and Perdita in saving their, and many many more, puppies is quite brilliant.
Dodie Smith, who wrote it, was a genius. As well as this timeless classic, she also wrote the wonderful I Capture the Castle.
A storybook retelling of a popular Disney classic finds Pongo and Perdita in a desperate search to recover their fifteen stolen puppies from the fur-worshipping Cruella De Vil, but the end of their journey produces more than they bargained for.
This has one of the best and most sympathetic dog heroes in all fiction – in my opinion.
Six Thirty is a wonderful creation, the real heart and hero of the novel. It’s a terrific book anyway, but made even more so having such a wonderful dog at it’s centre.
I also love that this is Bonnie Garmus’s first published novel and she’s in her sixties, great news for all us dog-loving late developers.
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • GOOD MORNING AMERICA BOOK CLUB PICK • Meet Elizabeth Zott: a “formidable, unapologetic and inspiring” (PARADE) scientist in 1960s California whose career takes a detour when she becomes the unlikely star of a beloved TV cooking show in this novel that is “irresistible, satisfying and full of fuel. It reminds you that change takes time and always requires heat” (The New York Times Book Review).
A BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR: The New York Times, Washington Post, NPR, Oprah Daily, Newsweek, GoodReads
"A unique heroine ... you'll find yourself wishing she wasn’t fictional." —Seattle Times…
1
author picked
Courtney
as one of their favorite books, and they share
why you should read it.
This book is for kids age
5,
6, and
7.
What is this book about?
When the children bring Courtney home he's just a loveable scruffy old dog. But the-mongrel-that-nobody-wants has the most amazing talents. He can cook! He can juggle! He can even play the violin! Then one day Courtney the wonder dog packs up his trunk and leaves home - but the children find out his helping paw is not far away...
I had to read this book backwards, or rather check the end before I could read it at all, and spoiler alert, it has a happy ending.
It’s the heart-rending story of how journalist Kate Spicer adopted the wonderful Wolfie, who became her beloved companion in everything that she did, and how, while staying with her brother he ran away.
It’s the story of her desperate search to find him and about how kind people can be as they helped her scour London for the missing Wolfie.
'Lost Dog is already one of my books of the year. Spicer writes like a dream...You will love it.' India Knight, Sunday Times
'Sharply observed and deeply funny, it's one of the best, most enjoyable books of 2019 so far' British Vogue
Meet woman's best friend.
Kate is a middle aged woman trying to steer some order into a life that is going off the rails. When she adopts a lurcher called Wolfy, the shabby rescue dog saves her from herself. But when the dog disappears, it is up to Kate to hit the…
This is a briliant and unusual book by the writer of the highly successful Captain Correlli’s Mandolin.
It’s the true story of a wonderfully independent Red Kelpie, who hitches rides all over Western Australia, moving in with people for a while then moving on. He becomes a legend in the area, and there is a statue of him in his hometown.
It’s a timeless piece of modern folklore and a hymn to the wandering spirit of this extraordinary little dog, captured beautifully by de Bernieres.
The enchanting story of a very remarkable dog from the author of the bestselling Captain Corelli's Mandolin.
'In early 1998 I went to Perth in Western Australia in order to attend the literature festival, and part of the arrangement was that I should go to Karratha to do their first ever literary dinner. Karratha is a mining town a long way further north. The landscape is extraordinary, being composed of vast heaps of dark red earth and rock poking out of the never-ending bush.
I imagine that Mars must have a similar feel to it. I went exploring and discovered…
Rescue Dogs is a beautiful collection of loveable hounds with colourful histories and expressive faces. It will tug at the heartstrings and leave you with a profound sense of optimism for life, new beginnings, and kindness.
I once saw a play at the renowned Oregon Shakespeare Theatre. A play about Sor Juana. It was a good play, but it felt like something was missing like jalapenos left out of enchiladas. The play kept nudging me to look further to find Sor Juana, and so for the next five years, I did so. I read and read more. I listened for her voice, and that is where I heard her life come alive. This isn’t the only possibility for Sor Juana’s life; it is just the one I heard.
Sor Juana Ines de la Cruz, this brilliant 17th century nun flew through Mexico City on the breeze of poetry and philosophy. She met with princes of the Church, and with the royalty of Spain and Mexico. Then she met a stunning, powerful woman with lavender eyes, la Vicereine Maria Louisa, and her life changed forever. As her fame grew, she dared to challenge the diabolical Archbishop once too often, and he threw her in front of the Inquisition, where she stood, alone.
Sor Juana's work is studied still today, and justifiably so. Scholars study her months on end; mystics…
This astonishingly brilliant 17th century poet and dramatist, this nun, flew through Mexico City on wings of inspiration. Having no dowry, she chose the life of a nun so that she might learn, so that she might write, so that she might meet the most fascinating people of the western world. She accomplished all of that, and more.
One day a woman with violet eyes, eyes the color of passion flowers, entered her life. It was the new Vicereine, Maria Luisa. As the two most powerful women in Mexico City, the bond between them crossed politics and wound them in…
