Pet Memoir

Long Lost Family presenter and Radio 5 breakfast show host Nicky Campbell reveals how the simple unconditional love of Maxwell, his Labrador, turned his life around and helped him come to terms with his difficult journey as an adopted child. Dogs have been the common link between the key moments in Nicky Campbell's life: there was Toby, the dog he never knew and who sat devotedly by his cot before his adoption, and then the adorable fox terrier Candy, who arrived soon after he was happily adopted. Nothing could replace the loss of Candy when he died suddenly, when Nicky was 11.

The author of the heartwarming Craig and Fred tells the deeply emotional and inspiring story of the next phase of their lives together: working closely with prison inmates in Maine who raise and train puppies to become service dogs. Second Chances poignantly shows that no life is irredeemable and that each of us can make a difference if given the opportunity.

A dog activist buys Michael Vick’s dogfighting compound. What could possibly go wrong? As it turns out...everything. The decision Tamira would make that fateful day in February 2011 would lead not only to a home for her nonprofit’s rescue dogs, but also to the most turbulent four years of her life: She faced down allegations of racism, community harassment, poisoning, and, ultimately, false charges aimed at driving her and Dogs Deserve Better from the county.

As a veteran of the Royal Navy and longtime police officer, Colin Butcher was no stranger to dangerous situations. But a career in uniform can wear anyone down, so, in 2003, Colin left the force to start his own private detective agency, specializing in helping reunite people with their missing pets. And yet, despite his hundreds of successes, there were still heartbreaking cases where Colin couldn’t find the missing on his own. He knew he needed a partner.

"On the Road with Suzy: From Cat to Companion" is a delightful memoir chronicling a woman and her beloved cat Suzy who becomes not just a pet, but a true companion. From the first day Suzy enters the lives of Aleksandra and her husband Norman she makes an impact with her tortoise-shell long-haired fur and huge amber eyes. Little do Aleksandra and Norman know that they would soon be trying to find homes for her litter of kittens. As an animal lover, Aleksandra fosters other strays she meets up with, which Suzy is not always happy about.

Finding an iguana after he goes missing for three years is only one of the surprising moments in this memoir of pet ownership. There are midnight vigils with a sickly chameleon, disappearing sharks, and neighborhood dog disputes. This short little book is packed with all the feels, and you won't be able to put it down.

When Elvis Presley decided he wanted to buy a horse in 1966, he didn't want just any horse. "He wanted a Golden Palomino," Priscilla Presley remembers. "He would get up at 3:00 in the morning, go to certain farms and ranches and say, 'Do you have a Golden Palomino for sale?' People would say, 'That was Elvis Presley!'" Elvis's legendary love of horses drove him to find the golden palomino that would become his beloved companion, Rising Sun.

In December 2012, something happened that would turn Hannah Russell's world upside down. A promising young rider with two horses of her own, Hannah recently had been given the devastating news that she would never ride again. That morning in December, local Shetland pony breeder pulled up and asked Hannah if she wanted another horse. The woman said she had a six-month-old Shetland pony she couldn't keep. Without a moment's thought, Hannah said yes.

The Underdogs tells the story of Karen Shirk, felled at age 24 by a neuromuscular disease and facing life as a ventilator-dependent, immobile patient, who was turned down by every service dog agency in the country because she was "too disabled". Her nurse encouraged her to tone down the suicidal thoughts, find a puppy, and raise her own service dog. Karen did this, and Ben, a German shepherd, dragged her back into life.

For the first time in my life, I didn't need to pretend, I didn't need to be tough: I only needed to be honest. "I have cerebral palsy. I walk funny and my balance is bad. I fall a lot. My hands shake, too. That means I'm not so good at carrying things. And if I drop stuff, sometimes it's hard to just bend down and get it." I waited anxiously for the interviewer's response. She smiled. "It sounds like a service dog could be great for you."

After the New York Post's Cindy Adams lost her beloved husband, the famed comedian Joey Adams, the last thing on her mind was finding a companion. But that's exactly what she got when a visitor arrived with a surprise: a Yorkshire terrier named Jazzy. This is the true story of a tell-it-like-it-is gossip columnist who takes on society's most powerful and glamorous every day, but is ultimately redeemed by a tiny dog who teaches her more about joy and survival than any human ever could.

If you're an animal lover, you've no doubt been awed by tales of amazing feats performed by dogs and other animals throughout the years. Some of these tales are so epic that they barely seem real, yet we love them for the sense of wonder that they inspire. But what if you could enjoy the epic thrill of a fantastic tale, knowing that the story that you heard was true? As inspiring as fictional stories of heroic deeds can be, nothing is as exciting and touching as the real accounts of heroism.

In A Dog's Gift, award-winning journalist and author Bob Drury movingly captures the story of a year in the life of Paws4people and the broken bodies and souls the organization mends. The audiobook follows the journey of pups bred by the organization, from their loving if rigorous early training to an emotional event that Terry and Kyria have christened "the bump", where each individual service dog chooses its new owner through an almost mystical connection that ignites the healing process.

Stay rewired: This book is designed to take you all through a series of short stories into the lives of most invaluable dogs and birds. A journey full of fun, emotions, separation, loss, anger, laughter, surprises, shocks, jealousy, possessiveness, loyalty, sacrifices, learning, and lot more! A wonderfully engaging book for all ages!

This memorable book by one of our finest writers chronicles two passions: one for a dog named "Blue," another for the "guns of a lifetime." "Blue and Some Other Dogs" is a brilliant memoir about Graves' Basque-Australian sheep dog. "Guns of a Lifetime" tells the stories related to the guns this octogenarian Texan has owned, beginning with a "rusted and cylinderless" revolver.

In Trust the Dog, the Fidelco Guide Dog Foundation introduces listeners to a group of extraordinary people who, thanks to their guide dogs, flourish in a world that assumes the ability to see. Among them are a brother and sister who lost their sight at a very young age and whose dogs essentially helped them grow up, a Serbian girl who fled civil war to find new hope in America, and a newly blind single father determined to keep his family together against all odds.

When Briggs, a Boston terrier, is stolen from his family's deck and shoved into a waiting car, a chain of events unfold that shakes the city. The Stolen Dog follows Tricia and Josh, Briggs' owners, as they fight a force unknown, enduring death threats, psychic interventions, false leads, fake set-ups, and the threat of dog fighting.

From “a genuine American Dostoevsky” ( The Washington Post): A dazzling, funny, bittersweet exploration of the mysteries of relationship, both human and animal. When his favorite cat Biscuit goes missing, Peter Trachtenberg sets out to find her. The journey takes him 700 miles and many years into his past - into the history of his relationships with cats and the history of his relationship with his wife F., who may herself be on the verge of disappearing.

Listen to the story of what a 91-year-old management guru learned about management from an unlikely source: his dog. When 91-year-old legendary management guru Martin Levin decided to adopt a dog by the name of Angel, he thought he was in for an interesting experience, yet not a challenging one. It didn't take long for him to learn that he was wrong. Very wrong. Following one of the guiding mantras of his life to never stop learning, Levin found that each day with his dog brought new insights.

Listeners will delight in this tale of an urbanite who leaves her magazine job to move to Collelungo, Italy, population: 200. There, in the ancient city center of a historic Umbrian village, she sets up house with the enticing local gardener she met on vacation only weeks earlier. This impulsive decision launches an eye-opening series of misadventures when village life and romance turn out to be radically different from what she had imagined. Love lost with the gardener is found instead with Marcus, an abandoned English pointer that she rescues.