Friday, January 18, 2013

Eleven essential books for dog lovers

At the Christian Science Monitor Ben Frederick tagged 11 books that "succeed wonderfully in bringing the magic of dogs to the printed page," including:
"The Call of the Wild," by Jack London

Some will tell you that this is the best dog book ever written. "The Call of the Wild" follows Buck on a whirlwind journey to Alaska to become a sled-dog. Learning the hard lessons of life quickly, Buck loses the trappings of civilization and uncovers his own primitive nature. This 1903 classic is a must-read, not only for the quality of its prose but for its complexity of character. A great book for young readers facing transitional stages of life, it's also a story that gets better with multiple readings.
Read about the other books on the list.

The Call of the Wild is among Megan Miranda's top ten books set in a wintry landscape, Jill Hucklesby's top 10 books about running away, Charlie English's top ten snow books, and Thomas Bloor's top ten tales of metamorphosis. It appears on John Mullan's list of ten of the best wolves in literature and Alice-Azania Jarvis's reading list on dogs.

--Marshal Zeringue