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pagesofash 's review for:
The Teachings of Shirelle: Life Lessons from a Divine Knucklehead
by Douglas Green
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
I love memoirs about dogs, that's what drew me to this read in the first place, I tend to be something of a sucker for them and for the most part I wasn't disappointed.
I enjoyed this read, at times it even had me sniffling and wiping away a stray tear or two.
The author did a good job of narrating and I really enjoyed his poems. Here is a person who knows what it is to call a pet family, to understand that they're so much more than 'just a dog'. Anyone who's ever felt this with a pet will immediately feel seen and relate to this book. Over all it's a heartfelt, emotional tale and it's left me feeling a little more curious and open and minded but for the most part I'm just here for the dog love and it's got that in spades.
While I didn't always agree with Green, and there are things he does that my own life time with dogs caused me to shudder at, I appericated how open and honest he was in sharing his mistakes and the way he learned from them. I think my single biggest take away will be his comment about acknowledging a loved one's voice though I could tweak his ear for rubbing his dog's nose in her urine, but as I said, he lived and learned.
I have two main critiques and they both relate to how this book translates into an audio format.
I'd have loved to see the pictures, a downloadable attachment, like fantasy books have with their maps would have been nice in that regard.
Also, I didn't like the chime in between essays, actually I hated them. They were startling and horrible to listen to. I understand that given the format of this book something was needed to indicate where one piece ended and another began but that chime, as an audible experience, was awful, I couldn't stand it. The two little pieces of 'stage play' format didn't translate to audio particularly well either. Additional sounds or narrators would have helped there but they're not terrible.
I enjoyed this read, at times it even had me sniffling and wiping away a stray tear or two.
The author did a good job of narrating and I really enjoyed his poems. Here is a person who knows what it is to call a pet family, to understand that they're so much more than 'just a dog'. Anyone who's ever felt this with a pet will immediately feel seen and relate to this book. Over all it's a heartfelt, emotional tale and it's left me feeling a little more curious and open and minded but for the most part I'm just here for the dog love and it's got that in spades.
While I didn't always agree with Green, and there are things he does that my own life time with dogs caused me to shudder at, I appericated how open and honest he was in sharing his mistakes and the way he learned from them. I think my single biggest take away will be his comment about acknowledging a loved one's voice though I could tweak his ear for rubbing his dog's nose in her urine, but as I said, he lived and learned.
I have two main critiques and they both relate to how this book translates into an audio format.
I'd have loved to see the pictures, a downloadable attachment, like fantasy books have with their maps would have been nice in that regard.
Also, I didn't like the chime in between essays, actually I hated them. They were startling and horrible to listen to. I understand that given the format of this book something was needed to indicate where one piece ended and another began but that chime, as an audible experience, was awful, I couldn't stand it. The two little pieces of 'stage play' format didn't translate to audio particularly well either. Additional sounds or narrators would have helped there but they're not terrible.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death