A Big Little Life: A Memoir of a Joyful Dog
2 journalers for this copy...
Bought at Goodwill Saturday. I'm an animal lover and generally enjoy Koontz's work, so thought I'd enjoy this one. From the flap:
"In each little life we can see great truth and beauty, and in each little life we glimpse the way of all things in the universe."
DEAN KOONTZ thought he had everything he needed. A successful novelist with more than twenty #1 New York Times bestsellers to his credit, Dean had forged a career out of industry and imagination. He had been married to his high school sweetheart, Gerda, since the age of twenty, and together they had made a happy life for themselves in their Southern California home. It was the picture of peace and contentment. Then along came Trixie.
Dean had always wanted a dog--had even written several books in which dogs were featured. But not until Trixie was he truly open to the change that such a beautiful creature could bring about in him. Trixie had intelligence, a lack of vanity, and an uncanny knack for living in the present. And because she was joyful and direct as all dogs are, she put her heart into everything--from chasing tennis balls, to playing practical jokes, to protecting those she loved.
A retired service dog with Canine Companions for Independence, Trixie became an assistance dog of another kind. She taught Dean to trust his instincts, persuaded him to cut down to a fifty-hour work week, and, perhaps most important, renewed in him a sense of wonder that will remain with him for the rest of his life. She mended him in many ways.
Trixie weighed only sixty-something pounds, Dean occasionally called her Short Stuff, and she lived less than twelve years. In this big world, she was a little thing, but in all the ways that mattered, including the effect she had on those who loved her, she lived a big life.
ETA 8-31-12: Reserved for flossie771 in the Wish List Tag game after I get it read...
"In each little life we can see great truth and beauty, and in each little life we glimpse the way of all things in the universe."
DEAN KOONTZ thought he had everything he needed. A successful novelist with more than twenty #1 New York Times bestsellers to his credit, Dean had forged a career out of industry and imagination. He had been married to his high school sweetheart, Gerda, since the age of twenty, and together they had made a happy life for themselves in their Southern California home. It was the picture of peace and contentment. Then along came Trixie.
Dean had always wanted a dog--had even written several books in which dogs were featured. But not until Trixie was he truly open to the change that such a beautiful creature could bring about in him. Trixie had intelligence, a lack of vanity, and an uncanny knack for living in the present. And because she was joyful and direct as all dogs are, she put her heart into everything--from chasing tennis balls, to playing practical jokes, to protecting those she loved.
A retired service dog with Canine Companions for Independence, Trixie became an assistance dog of another kind. She taught Dean to trust his instincts, persuaded him to cut down to a fifty-hour work week, and, perhaps most important, renewed in him a sense of wonder that will remain with him for the rest of his life. She mended him in many ways.
Trixie weighed only sixty-something pounds, Dean occasionally called her Short Stuff, and she lived less than twelve years. In this big world, she was a little thing, but in all the ways that mattered, including the effect she had on those who loved her, she lived a big life.
ETA 8-31-12: Reserved for flossie771 in the Wish List Tag game after I get it read...
This is a very enjoyable and predictably heart-wrenching account of the life of the author's first dog. For me it was a nice glimpse into the "real" Dean Koontz, whose novels I enjoy. He comes across as very down-to-earth, loving, and spiritual, with a dry sense of humor and an appreciation for the little things in life. He constantly praises dogs for their joy and living in the present, and he defends what some call the "anthropomorphism" that humans apply to their canine friends, giving evidence that for him proves that dogs have emotions, memories, and souls. Some of my favorite passages:
...dogs eat with gusto, play with exuberance, work happily when given the opportunity, surrender themselves to the wonder and the mystery of their world, and love extravagantly. Envy infects the human heart; if we envy, next we covet, and what we covet becomes the object of our all-consuming avarice. If we live without envy, with the humility and joyful gratitude of dogs--nachos! ball! cuddle time!--we will be ready even for Death when he comes for us, content that we have made good use of the gift of life.
...
For a dog, the world is an ever-expanding carnival of mysteries. Every new experience enchants, and every morning is full of promise.
As children, we share that attitude, but we evict it when we become adults, as if the knowledge that comes with experience needs to occupy that particular chamber of the mind, as if wonder must make way for wisdom. But wisdom without wonder is not true wisdom at all, but only a set of practical skills mrried to tactical shrewdness of one degree or another.
...
We took comfort in the knowledge that God is never cruel, there is a reason for all things. We must know the pain of loss because if we never knew it, we would have no compassion for others, and we would become monsters of self-regard, creatures of unalloyed self-interest. The terrible pain of loss teaches humility to our prideful kind, has the power to soften uncaring hearts, to make a better person of a good one.
Koontz credits his dog Trixie with restoring his faith and wonder, and even with inspiring him to take creative risks that turned out well. He is an effective advocate, as well, of the Canine Companions for Independence; he believes in the power of one small act of kindness to spread and grow to help many people.
I recommend this book to anyone who is a dog lover, or an animal lover in general. It is well-written and entertaining, and somewhat thought provoking.
...dogs eat with gusto, play with exuberance, work happily when given the opportunity, surrender themselves to the wonder and the mystery of their world, and love extravagantly. Envy infects the human heart; if we envy, next we covet, and what we covet becomes the object of our all-consuming avarice. If we live without envy, with the humility and joyful gratitude of dogs--nachos! ball! cuddle time!--we will be ready even for Death when he comes for us, content that we have made good use of the gift of life.
...
For a dog, the world is an ever-expanding carnival of mysteries. Every new experience enchants, and every morning is full of promise.
As children, we share that attitude, but we evict it when we become adults, as if the knowledge that comes with experience needs to occupy that particular chamber of the mind, as if wonder must make way for wisdom. But wisdom without wonder is not true wisdom at all, but only a set of practical skills mrried to tactical shrewdness of one degree or another.
...
We took comfort in the knowledge that God is never cruel, there is a reason for all things. We must know the pain of loss because if we never knew it, we would have no compassion for others, and we would become monsters of self-regard, creatures of unalloyed self-interest. The terrible pain of loss teaches humility to our prideful kind, has the power to soften uncaring hearts, to make a better person of a good one.
Koontz credits his dog Trixie with restoring his faith and wonder, and even with inspiring him to take creative risks that turned out well. He is an effective advocate, as well, of the Canine Companions for Independence; he believes in the power of one small act of kindness to spread and grow to help many people.
I recommend this book to anyone who is a dog lover, or an animal lover in general. It is well-written and entertaining, and somewhat thought provoking.
Sent via media mail to flossie771 in the Wish List Tag game. Enjoy!
Arrived today....thanks for the tag!!!
