Woman's Best Friend: Women Writers on the Dogs in Their Lives »

They may be known as man's best friend, but as the writers in this poignant, funny, and dramatic collection know, there's no gender divide when it comes to canines. Whether walking down the street, gathering at the dog park, hitting the open road, or spending one too many nights together on the couch in front of the TV, a woman and her dog are an enduring pair. And there are many who consider their dogs to be members of their family and themselves to be full-fledged dog moms, even if they're single.
From the family dog who takes on the anxiety of a family as the writer's sister battles breast cancer, to the compelling tale of a woman searching for her furry friend in the aftermath of September 11th, to the blind and deaf dog who teaches everyone about keeping on truckin' no matter what predicaments she gets into, the essays in this anthology get at the heart of love — and yes, sometimes love-hate-relationships women have with the dogs in their lives.

Library Journal

This charming compilation of anecdotes, selected by editor McMorris (Oregon Hiking; coauthor, Pacific Northwest Hiking, 5th ed.) and written by capable women authors such as Caroline Knapp and Susan Cheever, explores woman's special bond with her canine companion. The result is a multitude of perspectives in which each tale is unique. The writers ignore nostalgic, sentimental anthropomorphism, focusing instead on the unsettling reality that any true dog lover will recognize: shedding hair; freezing, middle of the night yard trips in a coat over a too-short, too-sheer nightie; the heart-wrenching death of a beloved companion. This volume of high-quality writing can be enjoyed and savored in parts or read straight through; the brief biographies of contributing authors at the end are almost as entertaining as the text itself. Recommended for larger public libraries.-Cleo Pappas, Univ. of Illinois at Chicago Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.