John A. and Marguerite E. W. (aliennightbird) reviewed on 5/8/2009 + 40 more book reviews

Helpful Score: 1

Although this narrative was rich in fantastic imagry and symbolism which drew me into the emotion of a woman surviving the living grief whose husband suffered from a severe brain injury that totally changed his personality, the book altogether was almost like reading poetry written in prose format.

What I mean is that the narrative didn't really go anywhere. It was loosely told in small vigniettes which were sometimes no more than couple of paragraphs long that leaped between past and present, often without warning. There was no "plot" or progression through events or time that I could see.

I think that I would have better appreciated the book if I had read it just a little at a time. However, I did not have time for that.

The discuaaion questions included at the end of the book, for once, help me to understand some of the symbolism and also what the author intended to say. (Usually, discussion questions annoy me. They rememd me of assignment questions and reading quizes in literature courses in Junion High and High school. I keep thinking that I have to write an essay!)

One of the problems, though, is that I did not realize that the book was of memoires. I thought I was buying an ordinary general fiction novel.

But, despite my complaints, this book overall showed a fastinating and honest journey, sometimes warm, sometimes sad, sometimes angry, and sometimes even humorous, of one woman's pain, grief, and healing, with the help of her three dogs.

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