Nonfiction Dog Books

Until Tuesday: A Wounded Warrior and the Golden Retriever who Saved Him by Luis Carlos Montalvan shows the relationship between dog and man can help veterans after their tours with Tuesday giving the trust, openness and “normalcy” he craves as he deals with his ongoing PTSD.

The Second Chance Dog by Jon Katz follows the author, Jon as he chases the love of his life, Maria by bonding with her dog, Frieda. It is more of a treatise about love, artistic endevours, and persistance but the relationship of Jon coaxing Frieda to trust him and opening his eyes to the remarkableness of the dog-human bond is as sweet as the romance.

Thunder Dog: The True Story of a Blind Man, His Guide Dog and the Triumph of Trust by Michael Hingson follows the remarkable story of a dog, Rosella leading her blind master out of the collapsing Twin Towers. It’s harrowing as describes the chaos around him while his dog, keeps cal through it all.

The Dog Who Saved My Life: Walking with Peety by Eric O’Grey is another man and dog story where the overweight decides to get his life on track and save himself from future heart failure. One of his first steps is to adopt a dog, that would be the obese Peety, and they go on to have a journey of exercise, vegitarianism and healthy living to push each other on to become their best selves.

Merle’s Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog by Ted Kerasote is a book that is less memoir and more observations and thoughts connecting science, psychology and sociology. While Kerasote provides nice anecdotes of his own dog, Merle this has a lot more science in it talking about dog training, the relationship and evolution of dogs to wolves, comparing their behavior etc. Good for those whoa re into animal behavior.

Lessons from Lucy: The Simple Joys of an Old Happy Dog by Dave Barry is a humorousmemoir taking life lessons that this stand up commedian learned from his dog about aging gracefully. Or at least without sounding like the cranky neighbor shooing kids out of the yard. He has opinions but makes it clear that their his sort of thing and doesn’t preach. Rather he gives common sense wisdom that we could all use a reminder of. Plus hug our dogs.

Where the Lost Dogs Go: A Story of Love, Search and the Power of Reunion by Susannah Charleson follows her work as a Lost Pet Rescuerer. It’s her business to help people across the country who have lost their beloved animals, mainly dogs. She offers lots of useful tips on the process, the network community and what to do when you encounter a lost dog. There’s some sad stories of what could have been and the heartwarming reunions alongside glimpses into Susanna’s life as her new dog, Ace helps her deal with her elderly parents’ dementia.

Rescue Road: One Man, Thirty Thousand Dogs and a Million Miles on the Last Hope Hightway by Peter Zheutlin is a hard book if you’re a dog lover. While the subject of Greg Mahle rescuing dogs from the Deep South. It’s heartbreaking, showing the tough decisions made and the hardships dogs go through but also rewarding to see the happy family matches but again, heartbreaking. It’s a tough job but it’s wonderful to know that there is a group out there (multiple really that you can visit the websites printed in the acknowledgements) that dedicate their time, effort and hearts to saving these animals that love so unconditionally and have a chance for a better life.