I love animals and Jon Katz so this was a great read for me. Each chapter discussed the animals in his life and the bonds that they share(d). It is such an uplifting book about this most crucial of bonds in our lives.

From the time this book went on my Kindle through the time I actually had a chance to read it, our dog became ill and passed away. This book was actually very comforting to read a few weeks later. While many of the stories are also told in his previous books, there was enough new material and insight for me to enjoy reading this. As we prepare to welcome a new dog into our lives, I will draw on some of the knowledge he imparts. Certainly not a training book, but the ideas of confidence and understanding with animals go a long way.

Hooooo, this book.

Let me start by saying that I am a pretty big Jon Katz fan; I think I've read almost all of his animal books. I've always loved the way he's written about animals.

And to say that I didn't enjoy this would be wrong, because I mostly did, and I think there's a LOT to value in this book. Everything Katz says about finding animals a place in a human world resonates with me, from the decision he made to euthanize his beloved Orson, to give up poor failing Elvis and to the work he's done with the carriage trade in New York....well, I think he's on to something here. I think his point that many people railing against working animals are people who've never looked a farm animal in the eye. So I'm enormously sympathetic to that argument in this book.

But uh, the actual talking to animals parts? Look, I'm just going to say it: I don't think animals and humans can communicate by sending images back and forth between them. I'm not saying your animal doesn't read every single thing it can off your body language and scent and whatnot. But oh boy, the talking in pictures thing? Yeah, I just can't leap off that bridge. (I have a dog that I love very very much, if you're wondering if I have any animal contact; I do, every day. She is the light of my life and I think all the time about how to give her a merciful, sweet end to her life. But communicating in images. Oh boy, I don't think so.) I don't know, I think Katz has just walked a little further into the deep end than I'm willing to go.

Anyway, thanks to the publisher and to NetGalley for the ARC!

Jon Katz lives in this world unlike you or me. He truly understands and communicates with animals on a level that appears almost mystical. I found myself reexamining long-held beliefs about my own experiences and interactions with pets as I became immersed in Katz's beautifully related stories of the powerful connections he made with the animals in his life. While his theories seemed far-fetched at first, by the time I finished the book, I became a believer -- experimenting with my two bulldogs to seek a richer, deeper relationship with them rooted in the lense of a new outlook on their needs, desires and ability to connect with humans. A must read for animal lovers and pet owners.