Book picks similar to
Ordinary Dogs by Eileen Battersby
animals
dogs
nonfiction
memoir
I'm (No Longer) a Mormon: A Confessional
Regina Samuelson - 2012
This is not as easy as one would imagine: She was born in the church, educated at BYU, married in the temple, and is raising more Mormons. She faced a serious conundrum: keep quiet (and avoid losing everything dear to her), or tell the world what being raised LDS does to a person's psyche, especially when they realize that everything they were taught and everything they hoped to believe is a lie. To expose the difficulty faced by Mormons who leave the Church and to seek support for their plight, Regina offers a first-person confessional memoir recounting her many atrocious experiences, managing to weave in enough humor to keep you turning pages, and enough brutal honesty to bring you to an understanding of what it is to be a Mormon, and to try to leave it behind...
A Dog Called Perth: The True Story of a Beagle
Peter Martin - 2001
Almost immediately, she became a central part of their household. Alwayas left to run free, she became indefatigable explorer, gone for hours, sometimes entire days, but her infallible compass always brought her home. From her exploits in upstate New York to the story of her incredible survival in the Vermont wilderness and her later adventures in the English countryside, Perth displayed the same pluck, intelligence, devotion, unshakable trust, and unstinting love.Anyone who has ever owned or grown up with or wanted a dog will be captivated by this extraordinary, beautifully written homage to a very special creature.
Skidboot 'The Smartest Dog in the World'
Cathy Luchetti - 2013
And although we want it to last forever, we know that nothing ever does. In the early 1990's David Hartwig, a Texas cowboy with dreams of rodeo stardom, struggled to support his family and, in doing so, discovered a dog with talents he himself could never realize.Together with David, Skidboot shot to international fame, despite tumultuous events that nearly sent this rural family to the brink. Skidboot is a true story of loyalty, sacrifice, discipline, love, and companionship. Skidboot--there will never be another.
Medicine Dog: K9s, Stem Cells, and an Amazing Tail of Recovery
Júlia Szabó - 2014
Diligently researching how to restore his quality of life, she discovered Vet-Stem, a service that provides cutting-edge regeneration therapy for pets, using stem cells harvested from animals' own tissue. Just hours after receiving IV and intra-joint injections, Sam began aging backward--which left Julia wondering why this simple, effective treatment was not available for humans. Julia suffered from chronic inflammatory bowel disease, and after witnessing Sam's astonishing recovery, she set out on a curious quest: to be treated like a dog by a doctor as competent as her vet! After a four-year wait, Julia became the first American to be successfully cured of a perirectal fistula with stem cells derived from her own fat. With this amazing true story of how a pack of shelter dogs she rescued from death row came to save her life, Julia hopes to inspire and inform readers about exciting healthcare options available to them and their cherished animal companions.
Tennessee Tails: Pets and Their People
Kathryn Primm - 2013
Personal and medical details paint a charming picture of the author's love for her patients, respect for their owners and dedication to her profession. America's Veterinarian, Dr. Marty Becker says, "Animal lovers will love this book."
Over My Shoulder: A Columbine Survivor's Story of Resilience, Hope, and a Life Reclaimed
Kacey Ruegsegger Johnson - 2019
The Test: My Autobiography
Brian O'Driscoll - 2014
Since 1999, when he made his international debut, there has been no greater player in world rugby than Brian O'Driscoll. In 2010 Rugby World magazine named him its world player of the decade - and since then the legend has only grown. Now, at the end of his amazing career - which culminated in fairy-tale fashion with Ireland's victory in the 2014 Six Nations championship - he tells his own story. Honest, gritty and thoughtful, Brian O'Driscoll's Autobiography is not just an essential sports book. It is an essential book about family, friends, hard work, courage and imagination. "An amazing career. There will only ever be one BOD". (Dan Carter). "A thoroughly enjoyable read ...After reading The Test I warmed even more to O'Driscoll as a player and a man. He stood for a new ethos in Irish sport that refused to accept mediocrity or glorious failure". (Fergal Keane, Irish Times). "O'Driscoll's honesty ...takes the reader to a place they simply have not been before". (Vincent Hogan, Irish Independent).
Homicide: The View from Inside the Yellow Tape: A True Crime Memoir
Cloyd Steiger - 2018
During that time he worked some of the most notorious murders in Seattle, from serial murderers, domestic terrorists and psychotic killers. In his true crime memoir, Homicide: The View from Inside the Yellow Tape, he describes some of the most interesting murders he's worked on. Often shocking, often inane and even funny, it's a view you won't see on the evening news. A look inside the yellow tape; inside the interrogation room, where you come face to face with pure evil, and see what it's like to investigate murder.
Unsinkable: My Story
Jane McDonald - 2019
The nation first fell in love with Jane twenty years ago, as the break-out star of BBC reality TV show The Cruise. She was catapulted to dizzying overnight success, but since then, she has navigated some stormy waters. Her dreams hit the rocks as TV and music execs, 'the London lot', swooped in and tried to morph her into a generic international diva. Her fans didn't recognise her, and melted away. Her marriage to Henrik, which began with a fairytale Carribean wedding watched by a television audience of 13.5m, collapsed. Jane lost her confidence, and hid from the world.But Jane's unsinkable and now she's back on the crest of a wave. In her uplifting autobiography she shares her incredible story with heart and humour. It hasn't always been plain sailing, but now she's enjoying more success than she's ever had before, and her fans love her all the more for it.
Dog Gone: A Lost Pet's Extraordinary Journey and the Family Who Brought Him Home
Pauls Toutonghi - 2016
Fielding Marshall is hiking on the Appalachian Trail. His beloved dog—a six-year-old golden retriever named Gonker—bolts into the woods. Just like that, he has vanished. And Gonker has Addison's disease. If he’s not found in twenty-three days—he will die.The search begins. Fielding and his father, John, are dispatched to the field. They have the family's other dog, Uli, in tow. Combing the trails, Fielding and his father bond like never before. Fielding's sister, Peyton, calls and talks him through some of his lowest moments. And—at home—Fielding's mother, Virginia, sets up a command center.Virginia becomes a field general. With a map and a phonebook at her side—she contacts animal shelters, police precincts, general stores, community centers, newspapers, radio stations, churches, and park rangers. She is tireless. The local paper in Waynesboro writes a small story about the family’s search. The story hits the AP Newswire. Tips—many of them of questionable authenticity—pour in from across the country. But as the search continues, the Marshalls realize they may not survive losing him. Even as the wounds of their past return to haunt them and threaten to jeopardize everything—they know they have one mission: Bring Gonker home.With a big heart, intelligent humor, and a deft touch, Pauls Toutonghi tells this true tale of loss, love, and resilience. Dog Gone is by turns a story about how a family comes together in a crisis—and the way heroism can assert itself in the little things we do each day.
Billy the Kid: An Autobiography
Daniel A. Edwards - 2014
Jesse walked out of prison a free man and disappeared, never to be heard from again. Never, that is, until 1949 when he came out of hiding after almost 60 years to claim his inheritance. In the course of proving his identity to a court Jesse told some amazing stories of his time when he was an outlaw but his biggest revelation of all was that his good friend Billy the Kid was still alive. Jesse led a young lawyer to an old man named not William H. Bonney but William H. Roberts who after some consideration finally agreed to come forward and reveal himself as Billy the Kid only if he would help him obtain a pardon from the Governor before his death so he could die a free man. You see, Billy the Kid was still wanted for murder and was condemned to hang. To come forward and reveal himself was to risk being arrested and put to death. This was a risk that William H. Roberts was willing to take. He sat down with the young lawyer and told his story. That story is the one true autobiography of Billy the Kid and told only one time, to one man. This is his story.
Mornings with Barney: The True Story of an Extraordinary Beagle
Dick Wolfsie - 2009
If I had known how being ‘bad’ would be part of his charm and would add to his success on camera, I might have given this more thought. I was impressed with the legendary school’s sales pitch, including their money-back guarantee. But when I said my dog was a beagle, there was dead silence on her end of the phone . . . then a good-natured laugh. ‘I was just kidding about the guarantee.Television reporter Dick Wolfsie was walking out his front door on the way to the studio one wintry morning when he found a shivering beagle pup on his front steps. Dick placed the stray inside the house and was off to work. When he returned four hours later, his wife and young son were cleaning up what remained of the shredded couch, the living room curtains, and his wife’s favorite high heels. The family would soon demand that Dick either take the dog to work with him each day or find the troublemaker a minimum security facility. So, off to the station they went. And ultimately Barney nosed his way in front of the camera with Dick. Soon the dynamic duo would make TV history. For ten years—more than 2,500 morning news shows—fans watched the renegade pooch chew, howl, and dig his way through every one of Dick’s reports. But he also burrowed his way into everybody’s heart, becoming a beloved media star. Mornings with Barney is a hoot from start to finish, but more than this, it is the moving story of a mischievous pooch who touched and brightened the lives of an entire community.
To Catch a Cat: How Three Stray Kittens Rescued Me
Heather Green - 2016
She loved her work and threw herself into sixty-hour weeks—once walking into a subway pole, getting a concussion, and still going to the office. Her new boyfriend Matt lived across the river in a New Jersey town that had none of the glamour of New York. She liked Matt—a lot—yet she wasn’t sure what to make of weekends in gritty, dilapidated Union City. But things changed the summer morning Heather discovered a beautiful stray cat and her three black-and-white kittens in Matt’s neighbor’s backyard. When she made eye contact with one of the kittens, she felt something she’d never felt before. She and Matt had to save the little animals. Because if they didn’t, who would? The crazy world of cat rescue soon drew Heather in. As she and Matt worked together to figure out how to trap, tame, and find homes for their foundlings, she began to question the life she had back in Manhattan. This is the story of how three furry beings taught one woman about love, community, and what truly matters in life.
Becoming A Son
David Labrava - 2015
David writes from life experience as he has lived more lives than most people ever will, and he did it all over the globe. David is an accomplished Glass artist, Tattoo artist, Five Diploma Harley Davidson Motorcycle Mechanic, Producer, Director and an award winning Writer and Actor. David is a member of the most famous and notorious motorcycle club in the world. David was the Technical Advisor on the hit TV series Sons of Anarchy from the inception to the completion of the series. David was also a series regular on the show, reaching that position after being hired as the technical advisor, then becoming a day player actor, then a recurring character then moving to series regular. All of these things had to be earned, as they were not for sale at any price. Becoming A Son is not about them. It’s about David getting to those spots. It’s about overcoming great odds and coming out alive. David left home at fifteen years old and hit the streets. This is David’s journey of discovery and redemption spanning a course of forty years. From the beaches of Hawaii and California, to the forest of the great Northwest, to years in Amsterdam, San Francisco, New York City, Miami then back to California. David hit some highs and survived severe lows, living years on the streets, in and out of jail only to take his life back, and then squeeze every bit out of it that life has to offer. Becoming A Son is a journey of epic proportion. It’s about realizing your dreams and then against the odds achieving them. Adventuring across the globe David learned many lessons by reaching out and trying everything, making many mistakes and paying the price for it and living through it. Now he wrote about it. David has been writing and getting published for over 14 years. He wrote for the Motorcycle magazine ‘The Horse’ then had his own column in the National Hot Rod Magazine ‘Ol Skool Rodz’ for eight years. He co-wrote Episode ten in season four of SOA which Time magazine awarded an honorable mention to as best of the season. David also won the 2013 Readers Choice Buzz focus award for Best Wildcard Actor. Like great authors before him Labrava takes the reader into some dark places most people would never dare to go. Becoming A Son is a modern day story of living on the street and redemption, it is one man’s journey into the darkness of himself crossing the planet and transcending all levels and then coming back again full circle. It is an inspiration for anyone who is chasing their dreams and making them their reality. Becoming A Son will come to be known as an instant classic.
The Gift of Jazzy
Cindy Adams - 2003
But one day, a visit from a friend brought just that, in the form Cindy least expected: a tiny dog. Cindy Adams brings her famous wit, smarts and taste for celebrity gossip to a wry and touching story of the bond between a dog and its unlikely owner.