Harper Collins Australia

April 2020

• ISBN: 9781460758892
• ISBN 10: 1460758897
• RRP: 29.99 AUD

Well, no….it’s not the usual type of book I review and to be honest I’m more of a cat person than a dog one (though it’s not that I dislike dogs or anything!) but this is a book that I thoroughly enjoyed reading simply because it was both fascinating and heart-warming.

Journalist and editor Kate Leaver not only brings mental illness to a broader mainstream audience but celebrates the joyous and truly amazing bond that is between humans and dogs, particularly those dogs who can truly be called canine therapists.

Kicking off with some background of the domestication of dogs – which is fascinating and informative – Kate goes on to describe her special relationship with her rescue dog Bertie – a Shih tzu of quirky and endearing qualities.

The following chapters describe the intriguing and revelatory stories of ten different dogs who have transformed their owners’ lives: Missy the pug who has completely engaged with her eleven year old autistic owner helping him to make huge differences in his interactions with the world and people, Jingles the prisoners’ friend, Pip whose young owner has severe diabetes which is incredibly helped with her canine’s interventions and more.

Although clearly written for an adult audience, I know that I will have many of my teen dog aficionado readers who will thoroughly enjoy this read.

I found it inspiring and moving and highly recommend it to you and your readers for a non-fiction read with a real difference.