BlogHer Book Club: Love at First Bark

Julie Klam loves dogs. LOVES them. In Love at First Bark, she describes three different dog-rescue scenarios, and how helping save these dogs affected her life, and the lives of her friends and family. From the streets of New York City, to post-Katrina New Orleans, Ms. Klam works to make these homeless dogs safe.

As a self-described crazy cat lady, I absolutely understood Ms. Klam’s desire to keep these animals healthy and happy and placed in homes that would love and care for them. The stories of the rescues themselves were fascinating in the complexity and determination it takes to save the life of an abandoned animal.

The book itself, though, was rather thin. To me, it felt like it started abruptly, as if the author believed she was writing for an audience that had already read her previous two books (I hadn’t). The book itself only detailed three rescue stories in three lengthy chapters. Reading them felt more like three essays might have belonged in another, longer book.

That said, I loved Ms. Klam’s sense of humor (self-deprecating and punny, my favorite combination). I’m actually more curious now to read her other memoirs, both dog and non-dog related. And since reading this book, I find myself perusing Petfinder more often, looking for adult dogs who need forever homes. For a crazy cat lady, that’s something worth noting.

But that’s just my opinion. Check out the BlogHer Book Club site for more discussions about Love at First Bark.

Please note: I was compensated for this BlogHer Book Club review but all opinions expressed are my own. 

Filed in: Books