So as I have been reading the Parker Novels and finished reading The Outfit yesterday while pn a break at work I saw A Dog's Purpose sitting on our Community Swap shelf.
I work in a library btw. I picked it up and remembered seeing yourube shorts about a dog movie recently and thought this was it.
I started reading A Dog's Purpose yesterday evening and stopped at chapter six. I have spent a good portion of a slow day here today reading the book and finished the novel moments ago.
I haven't owned a dog in 12 or 14 years since my first dog passed away at the ripe old age of 16 years and A Dog's Purpose has made me want to get a dog again. I won't because I don't have the time to properly give to a dog eight now but maybe in a few years.
Alright onto the novel. Spoilers below if you haven't read the book.
This is the first time a book has had me tearing up multiple times and if you've read it you can guess the plot points I teared up at.
The story of a dog in a cycle of rebirth and their purpose building over time was so touching. From Toby to Bailey to Ellie and then finally to Buddy. The experiences of past lives informing the next cycle were well thought out and told organically and each life the Dog had still felt like a separate life.
This I think is important for the impact of the story because each human the dog came across was important especially at each point in it's lives which informed everything from the dog's perspective.
The novel didn't shy away from the cruelty of people or their ignorance of what a fog might be picking up from them. When Toby was put down I was upset for the dog, when Bailey was in the truck dying of Heatstroke I was concerned, but then Bailey had a whole life with Ethan which was the most important relationship of course, and as Ellie the dog worked to rescue people and understand their deeper complexities and feelings. Buddy had a harder time of things due to neglect until he found his way back to Ethan.
I know I glossed over a lot of the story but it was such a beautifully written tale and the afterword of how the story came to be was very nice. I am not sure if A Dog's Journey the sequel novel is something I want to read because I don't know if it can hold up to A Dog's Purpose.
by Strange-Avenues