“Every day you leave
me, sure as the rain falls in this lingering autumn
I dreamt I found
myself alone under dark stars—
your smell led me home.”

This is going on my list of gifts to give this year, it made me think of my son’s dog, a loving rescued large black dog who came to live with them when his former owners realized he was much too large for their tiny one-bedroom apartment in San Francisco. They thought he was a black lab, or mostly black lab, but it turns out he’s mostly pit bull. The perfect example for those who think all pit bulls are bad / dangerous. He’s a giant marshmallow. Loving and protective of the kitties and Halle, all five pounds of her on her fat days, Halle is smaller than Riley’s head.

The Team
This was written by Samm Hodges, a part of the creative team for the ABC sitcom ‘Downward Dog,’ as well as the voice of Martin on the show.
Phineas Hodges is part of the writing staff for ‘Downward Dog,’ and a freelance writer, director and editor.
Illustrations by Idil Gozde, an award winning animator

When I read my goodreads friend Jennifer’s review on this, she mentioned the Downward Dog TV show, which I’d seen, but never knew the name of, and then it magically disappeared. This is maybe even better than the show, but either way, a book won’t be taken away by the network.

You can check out Jennifer’s review here: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...


Many thanks for the ARC provided by Animal Media Group LLC

I was a huge fan of the Downward Dog TV show for the short time it was on ABC, so when I saw this book available, I scooped it up. Written in the same endearing style as the show, Martin, the dog, tells us his innermost thoughts. The author truly <i>gets</i> dogs and dog lovers, and this short, but charming, book is one I highly recommend to anyone who loves a dog. 🐶

Thank you to Sam Hodges, Animal Media Group, and Netgalley for the opportunity to read this treasure of a book.

This was a super, super cute read.
Downward Dog is a book of haiku's written from a dogs eye view, which is totally adorable.
Not to mention the little illustrations were precious!

But I didn't love it.
It was short, only 60ish pages.
But being so short it was hard to grasp the idea that it was written in a dogs voice.
I love, love, love my pup but I can't imagine her voice as the voice portrayed in the book.

First of all, I LOVED the TV show and was decidedly sad when I found out it was canceled. When I found out that Martin, the dog on the show, had written his very own BOOK, I was delighted! And now, having read it, I will recommend it to anyone who loves dogs even if you haven't seen the show. These haiku poems are at the same time funny, real, sweet, honest, and profound. It will make a perfect gift for any dog lover in your life!

I will be honest here: I did not know that there was going to be a TV series for ABC called “Downward Dog” since I barely heard any promos for the show. However, when NetGalley offered me a chance to check out the book that is going to spawn into a TV series called “Downward Dog: Very Serious Haiku from a Very Serious Dog” which is written by Samm Hodges and Phinehas Hodges along with artwork by Idil Gozde, I just knew that I had to check this book out and I must admit that this book has got me interested!

SUMMARY

The story is about a dog named Martin, who ends up being left at home by his human owner, Nan and during that time, Martin has decided to write a haiku about his life as a dog and you will be quite interested to hear what he has to say about his life!

PROS

I must admit that I found this book to be pretty creative and cute at the same time! I liked the way that both Samm Hodges and Phinehas Hodges wrote this story as it is styled in a haiku type of poetry and we get to see how Martin the dog views his life while relating his story and his relationship with his human owner Nan, to the audience in poetic form. I also liked the way that Samm Hodges and Phinehas Hodges incorporated some humor in this story, with my favorite moments being of Martin looking at Big Bird from “Sesame Street” on TV and commenting on it and Martin mentioning about how he would fart in bed with his owner. Idil Gozde’s artwork is both simplistic yet humorous at the same time as the artwork looks like children’s drawings, which would make sense since Martin the dog is supposedly the one who is writing this book; the artwork would often downplay the introspective nature of Martin, but does it in a humorous way!

CONS

The reason why I gave this book a four-star rating was because while I thought it was creative for the story to be told in a poetic narrative, it was a bit hard to understand exactly what Martin is saying throughout the book. Since the book is written in a way where various sentences are shortened in order to fit in with the structure of a haiku, I found some of Martin’s thoughts to be a bit incomplete and therefore, it was hard for me to see where Martin was going with his inner thoughts on his life.

OVERALL

Overall, “Downward Dog: Very Serious Haiku from a Very Serious Dog” is a truly cute book for anyone who loves reading about dogs and who loves reading haikus!

This collection of haiku supposedly written by a dog has some cute moments and overall is pretty decent. I was a bit disappointed that there were just drawings included and no photos of the dog throughout - feels like a missed opportunity for presenting the haikus directly on relevant photos. But dog lovers will enjoy this and likely relate to some of the thoughts.

Clever book with some clever haiku from the point of view of a dog. If the subject matter had stayed upbeat, funny and pet centered, I would have recommended this to dog lovers. However, a plot develops that is unnecessary to the light and lovely idea of the book. Also, this is has a tie-in to a television show (which, obviously, I have not seen) and the TV tie-in makes this less appealing as a gift book, although it could potentially build an audience for the show.

This was such a fun, lovable, quirky set of haiku. Any dog owner would love this book and this would make a great gift. I could relate to so many of the funny situations with my own dog. Thank you for the copy!

A very cleverly written book about haikus written from a dog's perspective about thi vs a dog might possibly be thinking about. Great present for dog lovers

I really enjoyed this (very) short book. Like the form of the poetry it embraces, the line drawing illustrations are spare and minimalist and suit the material very well. Haiku is not easy (well, that's the point). This book is beautifully written, poignant in places and really funny in places. It ends with an important message about adopting a companion from a shelter (like the author and coverdog, Martin :)

I find it difficult to not quote examples, but they are lovely and deal with the entire palette of experience from love and food and bonding, to fear of death and the endless universe. It's a touching profound tribute that moved me and made me laugh (sometimes at the same moment).

Well done. Truly well done.

Four stars

A cute and quick read perfect for dog lovers! I've never read haiku by a dog, but there's a first time for everything. I have no complaints or anything I dislike from this book, it was sweet, funny, and charming in the way only a dog could be. The illustrations we're pleasing to the eye and simple and I felt they really worked with the book.

I got this book because it looked like it could be goofy and fun. It was pretty goofy, but I didn't really like it. There were two pages just devoted to dog poop drawings. I didn't really need or enjoy that. 

The drawings were cute and I wish I could draw like that. The poems were for the most part complete misses for me. I didn't enjoy them. I am a huge dog person. I literally hold birthday parties for my dogs with invitations to their friends (one year it was even a sleepover). So this book should have been an easy sell for me. I just didn't click for me.

I am giving it a higher rating because it wasn't terrible, but it didn't hit the spot for me. Maybe if I was a fan of the show (or had ever seen the show) it would be better. There is a chance that you may love this book, but to me it was completely forgettable.

A short little book that touched my heart. This was a humorous and touching story filled with haikus written in the perspective of a dog. I have always loved stories in the perspective of animals, especially ones that are written like this. The dog's story was adorable and also heartwarming. This book made me laugh and was a quite enjoyable little read. It is not a large book but the story was perfect in it. If you are a dog or animal lover I'm sure you will find something you enjoy in it.

I cannot remember the last time a book of poetry made me laugh out loud. DOWNWARD DOG was absolutely entertaining, at least from the point of view of this dog lover. There are even one or two more serious haikus to balance out the ones that make you laugh. I'm pretty sure my own dog thinks much like Martin does.

My absolute favorite from the book:
"Shame: all the food has
vanished before I notice
I started eating"

Put this on your gift list for any dog lover. Absolutely adorable.

A easy and enjoyable read! Martin is a very serious dog with a serious talent for Haiku. Insightful and it is easy to infer the type of dog he is from his words.

ARC/Poetry: Disclaimer: I'm really mad the show was cancelled. I only discovered the show to catch a couple of episodes and poo f, it's gone.

This poetry book is poetry by the serious poet, Martin. Yes, he's a dog. I have one of my own, so I understand where Martin is coming from. It's a short book and more of the stocking stuffer variety for off lovers.

The book was charming, funny, a little sad, and something which I would give as a gift to dog-obsessed friends. I probably wouldn't reread it, but I would read a sequel

This is an unique look through the eyes of a dog. This dog happens to be a TV fabrication, but it is still at heart real dog and his little book of haikus would make a great gift (or self-gift) for any dog lover. After reading the book I actually went and watched some of the episodes (and may go back and watch the rest too).

This served as the perfect read when I didn't have any physical books on hand. I haven't see the show this book is based on but this definitely makes me want to check it out.

This is a quick read but a very special one. The poems are sweet, funny, and heartwarming. And I loved the illustrations as well. This is a perfect read for all dog lovers out there.