Dog Art Today

Tag: dogs we love

  • Chicken Soup for the Soul: Contest Winners!

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    Angel Dane by Rachel Tyler

    I am pleased to announce the winners of of Chicken Soup for the Soul: Dogs We Love are:

    Linda Belthius for this response…

    "My dog is Chicken Soup for the Soul because I have been blessed beyond my understanding with having her to help me through a loss of my dear sister-in-law. I was under so much stress I literally lost my hair, and without my Winnie to be there when I came home I think I would have sunk into a depression so deep it would have affected my whole life. Having to care for her and having her undivided love helped me to stay strong for myself and my family! She is an angel with fur!"

    …and artist Rachel Tyler chosen at random.

    I was so moved by everyone's responses.  It was almost impossible to decide.  But Linda's last line "She is an angel with fur!" really got to me.  Inspired by her quote, I set up a new Dog Art Today photo album.  I would love for you all to submit photos of your dogs so I can meet all your angels with fur.

    Click here to submit your photo.  Everyone's dogs are welcome.   You don't have to have participated in the contest.  

    P.S. see more of Rachel Tyler's whimsical dog art at her website Pawsitive Art.

    P.P.S. see all the great responses here (scroll down to bottom of post).

  • Dogs We Love by Michael J. Rosen

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    Admit it.  You're just like me.  You judge a book by its cover too.  So you might also have put off reading Dogs We Love by Michael J. Rosen until you were wiped out by a cold and stuck in bed with nothing to read. 

    What's wrong with its cover?  The cute dog and the word "love" tell me that within the pages of this book somebody's dog dies.  And, looking more closely, I see that it is a compilation of 18 writers talking about the dogs they love, so I calculate there could be as many as 18 dog deaths.  No way.  I am not reading this book.  Just like I will probably never read Marley & Me or The Art of Racing in the Rain.

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    Well, I read it.  And guess what?  You really should not judge a book by its cover.  Or, if you do, read the fine print.  By doing so, you'll see that the writers are literary powerhouses, people like Jane Smiley, Edward Albee, Armistead Maupin, and Ann Beattie, among others, who do with words what the greatest artists I feature on this site do with color, line, texture and composition.  They show us what it's like to wildly, passionately love a dog.

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    I don't want to give anything away about the pieces, but know that the work is beautiful and brilliant.  As you read each one, you are reminded of the individuality of every dog you've ever known.  And, you lose yourself in the magic of dog love.  For me, that meant not just enjoying the funny, poignant stories of dogs and their owners, but somehow falling more deeply in love with my own dog – if that could even be possible.  It was like stumbling into a secret society that revels in all things dog, not on a scientific (boring) or elegiac (maudlin) level, but in an unbridled, joyful way that hit just the right note for me.

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    Complied by Michael J. Rosen, whose introduction is absolutely wonderful and speaks to his own talent as a poet and writer (of over 65 books), Dogs We Love is also a book that gives back to the dogs we love.  All profits go to Rosen's grant program, The Company of Animals Fund, that supports animal welfare agencies throughout the country. 

    Last but not least, the book is filled with Robin Schwartz's charming B & W photography (pictured here), as sweet and funny as the dog tales told are.

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    Father's Day is June 15.  If your dad is a literary minded dog-lover, Dogs We Love, is the pick of the litter! 

    Click here to order it today.

    And don't forget to stop by Micheal J. Rosen's website to learn more about this fascinating writer, editor, illustrator, fidosopher, philanthropist, and cook.

    P.S. If this book sounds familiar, it is a smaller version of Dog People, offered at the nicer price.