I Could Chew on This

"And Other Poems by Dogs"

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

 

About - Dogs release their voices in this collection of poems that describe their joy, sorrow, and fears as they see them. Humor fills the pages as the dogs recount being left alone, running free, and playing games. See the world through your dogs eyes and appreciate them new.

Author - Francesco Marciuliano

Publisher - Chronicle Books

Personal Opinion - This collection of poems from a dog's point of view on various topics is charming and, at times, laugh out loud funny. They really get at the heart of the dog's brain and thought processes. Some of the funniness also comes from the dog not fully comprehending what is going on in the poem while the reader does. Even those who are not fond of poems could find these enjoyable. The only thing I did not like about these poems were to ones concerning sex. People who love dogs will be able to identify and enjoy these poems.  

Buy - Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Publisher,

To read or comment on this and other reviews, stop by Bookworm

 

Chew on a good book today!

Ruby's Tale

"A True Rags to Riches Story"

Bookworm's Ranking - 4.5 Worms

About - Ruby defies the stereotypes of pit bulls and shows the true nature of the breed. When adopted by her new home, she loves everyone she meets and goes on to host a radio show, perform in stage productions, and be a finalist in a Milk Bone competition. Her love abounds as she works as a service dog visiting others in nursing homes. Ruby might be a pit bull but she is not what someone would expect.

Author - Patrick Bettendorf

Publisher - Tasora Books

Age Group - 15 and up

Personal Opinion - With charm, humor, and honesty, Ruby's Tale is full of wonderful tales and lessons on dogs and their abilities. It made me laugh at her antics, happy at the change of people, and furious at the behavior of some people to dogs. Through her adventures, Ruby defies her breed's stereotype and inspires her owner and fans though her exploits on stage, radio, and service work. Ruby's tale is not the only one to grace the pages but also that of her owner, other dogs, and the experiences around them. This, though, at times made me wonder why Ruby's story was chosen to tell over one of the other dogs in their life and seemed to derail from what the point of the book was. But this is becoming one of my new favorite books and would gladly share it with friends and family.

Buy - Amazon, Barnes and Noble,

Awards - Indi Excellence Winner
                Book of the Year Finalist

To read or comment on this and other reviews, stop by Bookworm

Chew on a good book today!

A Breed Apart: Trinity: Military War Dog

"An Ex-Green Beret and His War Dog

on the Greatest Mission of Their Lives.

And Probably Their Last."

Bookworm's Ranking - 4 Worms

 

Storyline - Heath Daniels only ever wanted to follow in his families footsteps and serve his country. But after a mission gone wrong, his dream to continue to serve is shattered by his inability to work in the field and has left him floundering for what God wants him to do. Left only with the one girl he could rely on, Trinity, his military war dog who could not function after he left the service, Heath receives an invitation to become part of the Breed Apart, a program ran by an old friend to inspire others. Soon they head to Afghanistan to speak at bases and troops. But Heath didn't expect to start falling for a beautiful girl, Darci, who he doesn't realize is an United States operative who is undercover. But when her past comes back to haunt her in the form of a man she played and betrayed in one of her missions, it is going to take Heath and Trinity to find and rescue Darci before she is killed or taken out of country. On the way, Heath and Darci are going to have to face God and learn what he wants for their lives.

Author - Ronie Kendig

Publisher - Barbour Publishing

Age Group - 17 and up

Content - *May Contain Spoilers* Heath works on trying to do what God wants but pushes for what he wants, ultimately coming to see that he needs God to lead and not him to lead God. Darci wonders about God after all the tragedies in her life. She also has regrets in her past but wants to help her country and do the right thing. Trinity is loving, caring, and protects the one she loves. Was totally dog ;). The antagonist is one vile man, beating and torturing happens when he is around, nothing is described but is understood.

Personal Opinion - What can I say? I was very pleased with this book. I loved Trinity. Some books have a synopsises that hints at animal involvement but then they are minimally in them. Not so with this book. Trinity was perfect. She had a real character and was completely realistic in her personality. The author would write a behavior and/or the human in the story would give something for the dog to say and each time I would see it in my mind because it was realistic. Just look at that cover for the cuteness. Trinity was the best... But I should probably say something about the people too. They and their struggles were realistic, with Heath trying to find God's path for him now that he is out of the Military and Darci being undercover and dealing with demons of her own past. They were people you could meet on the street. Each and every character, no matter how big their role in book, had a complex back story and were real people. My only complaints would be that there seemed to be scenes that were not needed and the info in them could have been transferred somewhere else. Trinity's personality, also, wasn't as prevalent towards the end. Lastly, maybe one or two too many plot twists for the story. But, Trinity all came together nicely and this is sure to be a book I will be recommending in the future and tossing peoples' way.

Video -

Buy - Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Publisher,

Links - Learn more about this book and author here.
            Book 2, Talon - Review, Coming Soon
            Book 3, Beowulf - Review, Coming Soon

Special Notes - Book one in the A Breed Apart Series.

To read, comment, and rate this and other reviews, stop by Bookworm

Blind Hope

Storyline - Laurie had made many mistakes in life while trying to find love and belonging. After gaining a job at Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch, she hears of a place that has dogs and a horse for rescue. Wanting to help, she agrees to take a dog only to be repulsed by it when she finally sees it. Not wanting to go back on her word and seeing what kind of place she would be leaving it to, she takes the dog and starts helping it heal and gives it a new name, Mia, and eventually love arises between dog and master. As time goes on, medical troubles arise. One of those troubles is blindness. As dog and own work together, Laurie learns about trust in God and many other lessons that she was only able to learn through her blind dog.

Author -Kim Meeder and Laurie Sacher

Age Group - 16 and up

Positive - The book teaches excelt lessons on faith and trust in God. On how he sees what's a head and we don't so we must listen to Him to find the right path. Also, it teaches that just because we begin to listen and have faith in God, doesn't mean that our troubles will cease but we will have peace.

Negative - Nothing really objectionable even though it hints that Laurie had done some wrong things in the past but it doesn't go into detail or ever show or say that these things were good. Quite opposite, it only talks about these things as bad.

Writing - The book was mostly telling of the instances of when Laurie learned something from her dog and the discussion between Kim and her about it and what it means concerning faith in God and growing in Him. It teaches many good lessons and points out many good things about faith and the love and forgiveness of God. The descriptions are colorful and interesting. I think the people who would get the most out of this book are people who suffered or think like Laurie once did but others will enjoy it as well and be reminded of many wonderful truths that should never be forgotten.

Personal Opinion - I found the book to be enjoyable and the of blind dog and owner who sees what is in front of the dog vs. humans and what God sees in our path in life depictions are wonderfull. I wish it had done more showing instead of telling but since it was mostly emphasising the lessons that the two learned and the growth in God, the telling might have been a way for the reader to focus on the lesson more. A really good book and I think anyone who has been in Laurie's situations or felt the way she did or has/is living the way she was would get the most from the book. But the lessons on love won't be lost on anyone and this book will bring those lessons back to the front of the mind as it is read.

Links - Learn more about the ranch and book at (there is also a video about the book at this link): http://www.crystalpeaksyouthranch.org/blindhope/ . Learn some more at the publisher's website too at: http://waterbrookmultnomah.com/catalog.php?isbn=9781601422804 .
Disclaimer - In exchange for an honest review, I received this book for free from WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group

Special Note - The reason I wanted to read this book was because I once had a blind dog too. He was a good dog, a little crazy but good. He has passed but he was sweet and loved tennis balls (and chocolate). He lived a good life and was well taken care of.

To read, comment, and rate this and other reviews, stop by http://bookwormreading.blogspot.com/

The Adventures of Santa Paws

Storyline - Book 1: Santa Paws - A young puppy looses his mother and siblings so goes on the hunt to look for them. Along the way, he meets nice people who he wishes would take him home with them and saving people and bringing hope to them during the Christmas season. His heroics eventually gets him the name Santa Paws.

Book 2: The Return of Santa Paws - Christmas a year later. Santa Paws and his family is flying to a cabin in the mountains for Christmas when they crash and it is left to Santa Paws and his human kids to find help before it is to late.

Author - Nicholas Edwards

Age Group - 10 and up (The book is a simple read but their are somethings in it like how a woman feels a year after her husband dies and a woman that is living in her car with her children after loosing her job and home that maybe more appropriate and understandable to an older age group.)

Positive - Sweet and charming tale about a dog. Santa Paws likes helping people (mostly because he gets attention) and tries to do the right thing among the town. It was interesting to see how the dog perceived the people and what the people saw of the dog. The things the dog does are miracle like and real dogs doing these type of things this character does have happened. In book 2, the kids and Santa Paws keep fighting even when it gets hard and everything seems lost.

Negative - In book 1,the dog sometimes thinks that the people has abandoned him and wonders if he will ever see them again as the people worry that the dog will think that they abandoned him. This might make kids worry that their dog does think like that and gives them a defense for their case.

Finish - The story was cut though young for me but that is a personal opinion. Younger kids will enjoy the delightful Santa Paws though some of the situations in the book they may not understand. Just on a personal note, when the family goes to a service for the whole town on Christmas meant to make everyone feel welcome no matter their believes, a priest says that "it wasn't about religion, it was about community. It was about neighbors." As being neighbors is all well and good, there is something to say about religion and it being important.  We should definitely be neighborly to others around us because that is how we want others to treat us. With respect. I'm just not sure how true this statement is. Something I need to research for myself. But in the end, it is still a good and sweet book and it has a good Christmas spirit to it, would recommend for kids who love dogs.

Links - None. Some information on Wikipedia and a list of other Santa Paws books.

To read, comment, and rate this and other reviews, stop by http://bookwormreading.blogspot.com/