Simon Garfield (Just My Type) takes readers on a charming cultural and scientific journey that examines how the interdependent bond between humans and canines has evolved, and how it has transformed millions of lives--two-legged and four-legged--over centuries.
Garfield's beloved black Labrador retriever, Ludo, serves as the main inspiration for his study of how dogs progressed from scavenging wild wolves into domesticated companions, sharing homes with humans who provide them with posh creature comforts.
The dog as an extension of human life drives the narrative as Garfield, the quintessential journalist, dips briefly into science on topics such as dog DNA, genomes and shared human-dog diseases. The bulk of the research presented, however, focuses on accessible, more entertaining tidbits: ways dogs are acquired and named; anthropomorphism; the roles of dogs in art, film, literature and sports; and dogs as notable companions to the likes of Einstein, Houdini, Queen Elizabeth II and a host of others. He also examines the symbolic power of dogs in propaganda for leaders like Hitler, with his purebred German shepherds, and Churchill, with his stout British bulldog. Dogs have served as a "global repository of love" and that is evidenced in sections devoted to Snoopy, "stupid pet tricks" on The Late Show with David Letterman, William Wegman's clever portraits of his Weimaraners and the modern-day dog stars of Instagram.
Garfield's affection for his dog, coupled with his appreciation and admiration for the long, fascinating, shared history of loyal, devoted human-canine companionship, is evident on every page. --Kathleen Gerard, blogger at Reading Between the Lines