A Book About A Boy And His Dog(s)

I love me a good book, a book that will at once engage me, relax me and take me out of the day with no nightmares or heavy thought-provoking head stuff.  I don't want to be a book critic.  If I like it, I like it.  I don't question form, I don't question method, style or intent.  I just want to be engaged and taught. I like character development.  I don't like heavy sex or violence.  I felt that I found that kind of book when I read 'The Story of Edger Sawtell.'  When I find a good book, it's hard for me to do anything else but read, hence my absence from the blog.  I read it when I could, which was mainly at night before going to sleep.  

I happen to be a dog lover.  This book taught me a lot about dogs, even though I have owned a dog at least half of my life.  I suppose I got it because it was recommended to me at my local library, where I was searching for a book.  I didn't even realize that it was on Oprah's book club.  I don't like to read reviews too much before getting into the book because sometimes that influences my choice and I like to judge things for myself.  Normally, you would think that a subject such as this would be a Young Adult Reading List book.  But it isn't.  It is written for adults and has some complex themes in it. 

Boys and dogs just go together.  This is my boy and his dog!

  I loved the language David Wroblewski used in descriptions, I loved his imagination in dreaming up the characters and their histories.  I admit that I didn't understand some of his additions to the story and some of the characters weren't as well developed as they could be, for instance the old woman at the grocery store was fascinating, but where on earth did she come from and why was she the way she was?  No clue!  

One thing I do know, If no one has ever had a dog, after finishing The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, I would venture to say you'll feel as though you've had one all your life. It made me appreciate my own Evee so much.  I didn't even mind that he sometimes made the dogs have thoughts and feelings like humans.  It was so touching because I believe that if animals were to have human-like thoughts,  Wroblewski nailed it.  

I also loved the way the relationship between the father and son turned out.  Here is a very inward and stoic boy who never really was able to express much to his parents and finally in the end, he was able to say and show exactly what was the most important.  It made me cry..and don't even start me about his own personal dog, Almondine.  I know that many people read this book and I was probably the only reader who hadn't up to this point.  I'm glad that I waited.  I was ready for this book and it was worth the read.  

I went to GoodReads and looked at some of the reviews and gad, there are a lot of cynics in this world.  I really couldn't believe all of the meanness.  But you like what you like, and thank goodness there are authors like Wroblewski who can write up a novel that is sensitive, descriptive, exciting, imaginative and thought-provoking all in one good read.