Nose Down, Eyes Up
Merrill Markoe
Villard, Apr 20 2010, $15.00
ISBN: 9780345500212
Forty something Gil works as a handyman at an elderly couples’ vacation home where he also resides for free. His girlfriend Sara works as an animal communication expert, which has enabled Gil to understand what his four dogs want.
He is taken aback when he realizes the top canine in his pack Jimmy the alpha is providing lessons and lectures to the neighborhood dogs on a variety of surviving with human topics. Jimmy teaches the other dogs how to properly beg especially for treats and the merits of indoor vs. outside peeing in nasty weather.
When Gil meets up with his former wife, she offers him work remodeling her guesthouse. He accepts, but Jimmy persuades him to take him with him. As he ignores Jimmy for time with his remarried former wife, Gil makes it clear to his four legged BFF that he is not his companion’s biological father. Upset to know he is adopted Jimmy seeks out his biological parents especially his mother; not realizing how nearby she is.
This is a terrific pooch lit parable that focuses on what makes a family without being overly too cute. Jimmy and Gil are a wonderful pairing as Jimmy assumes the man who raised him is his daddy until he learns the shattering truth. His observations on family, love, and loyalty will obviously provide dog lovers with a charmer, but other readers will appreciate the wisdom of Jimmy’s teachings starting with the title.
Harriet Klausner
