Finally Home: Lessons On Life From a Free Spirited Dog, by Elizabeth Parker

Finally Home: Lessons On Life From A Free Spirited Dog by Elizabeth Parker
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

The past decade or so have seen numerous books come out in groups: Jane Austen books (those with Jane Austen in the title and/or as an updated version of an Austen book), animal books (following the success of Marley & Me, The Art of Running In the Rain, and Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, and, more recently, vampire books.

Having read several books from the animal genre, including the much-loved Marley & Me, I decided to read Finally Home: Lessons on Life From A Free Spirited Dog, by Elizabeth Parker. (Disclaimer: It helped that it was temporarily on the "free Kindle book" list.)

Parker and her fiance found themselves the owners of a rambunctious Golden Retriever name Buddy. Buddy had gone through several owners before winding up with the couple. It didn't take the two long to figure out why he had worn out his welcome with previous owners; he was a handful. Almost half-way through the book, the couple adds a second dog, Brandi, in the hopes that a buddy for Buddy would calm him down. Eventually, the two dogs bonded.

While I kept hoping for another Marley & Me or Glenn Plaskin's Katie Up and Down the Hall, Finally Home never quite jelled. While Buddy seemed like an energetically amusing dog, the book lacked a decent path to follow. It seemed not much more than one amusing anecdote after another. Parker's obvious love for Buddy, and later, Brandi, come through. However, while John Grogan (Marley & Me) wove how Marley came into his family's life and became part of his family, and Plaskin was able to show how Katie was the thread that wove several unrelated families into a larger family, Parker's book has little flow beyond the "we bought Buddy, anecdote, anecdote, ... , we bought Brandi, anecdote..." I wanted to love the book, and while I found parts of Finally Home funny, Parker would have served her readers - and Buddy - better by showing how Buddy became part of her life and her family.

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Katie Up And Down the Hall, by Glenn Plaskin

Katie Up and Down the Hall: The True Story of How One Dog Turned Five Neighbors into a Family by Glenn Plaskin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Over the past decade or two, it seems that similar groups of books have been published in a relatively short span of time, usually following the popularity of one particular book in each genre. People rediscovered Jane Austen, and suddenly, Jane Austen knock-offs appear: Jane Austen in Boca, Jane Austen in Scarsdale, Bridget Jones' Diary, and Jane Austen Ruined My Life, among others.

Another example is the run of books dealing with families' pets, following the popularity of John Grogan's Marley & Me. Katie Up and Down the Hall: The True Story of How One Dog Turned Five Neighbors into a Family, by Glenn Plaskin is one of those pet books.

Glenn Plaskin had moved into an apartment in New York City and wanted a dog. As luck would have it, he was introduced to Katie, a beautiful Cocker Spaniel who would soon become his dog. (Okay, I should add a disclaimer here: The photo on the book's cover caught my attention, since my beloved Cocker Spaniel, Osha, had died several years earlier.) Katie soon found that if she wandered "up and down the hall," she would have friends to play with, feed her treats, and hang out with, thus helping neighbors on the same floor to meet each other and become an extended "family."

While this sweetly written book may not be everyone's cup of tea, if you enjoyed reading Marley & Me, there's a good chance you'll enjoy this. While Grogan set the bar for pet stories at 5 stars, Katie... ranks a good, solid 4.

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Caught, by Jane Schwartz

Caught by Jane Schwartz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Interesting book that, on the surface, deals with the world of pigeon chasers in Brooklyn during the 1950s. Louie is a young girl who is introduced to pigeons on roof-tops through her brother and brother's friend. When the group is found stealing birds from a man who stole from them, Louie is the only one officially caught, then dragged to the local pigeon store. After this trip, Louie meets up with Casey, who owns a large flock in the neighborhood. The late-30s Casey needs a chaser, and hires Louie on.

The surface story deals strictly with the birds, Louie and Casey's relationship on the roof, and Louie's family's concern about Louie's time on the roof. As with any decent story, though, there are various layers to sift through.

While the ending may be inevitable, the events leading up to the last page will stick with the reader, making this a book to read, set aside, and read again at a later time.

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