Have you ever wondered why human beings have such a deep connection with their dogs?
Andrew Root’s search for the canine soul began the day his eight-year-old son led the family in a moving Christian ritual at the vet’s office for Kirby, their beloved black Lab dog. In the coming weeks, Root found himself wondering why the loss of their pet still hurt so deeply, and why his son’s religious act seemed so right in the moment. As Dr. Root, a theologian by training, witnessed his family coping with the loss of Kirby, he felt compelled to explore the intellectual, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of our relationships with the dogs we love.
In THE GRACE OF DOGS: A Boy, a Black Lab, and a Father’s Search for the Canine Soul (Convergent, hardcover, $22.00, June 2017), Root draws on biology, history, theology, cognitive ethology (the study of animal minds), paleontology, and a wealth of personal stories to trace how humans and dogs have so often helped one another—emotionally and even spiritually—to become more fully ourselves. With eloquence, humor, and sensitivity, THE GRACE OF DOGS leads readers on an unforgettable reading adventure in search of answers to questions such as:
- How did dogs and humans first develop the mutually beneficially relationship they share and that remains unique in the animal world?
- Is it accurate to say that dogs love us?
- What do psychology and physiology say about why we react to dogs in the way that we do?
- Do dogs have souls?
- Will we be reunited with our beloved pets in the afterlife?
- Why do children and many adults feel compelled to acknowledge the passing of a pet dog with a religious service or act to acknowledge the loss?
THE GRACE OF DOGS paints a vivid picture of the dog-human connection through history and describes why it’s often the wagging of the pooch at the door that reminds us best that we are worthy of love and created to share love
Leave a Reply