Markus Zusak (The Book Thief) fans will feel as though they're in his living room as he reflects on the trio of canines--Reuben, Archer, Frosty--that round out his family in Three Wild Dogs (and the Truth). Life in Sydney's eastern suburbs unfolds mostly as the dogs see it: rubbish on the ground, nine lines of cars, and "almost, always, Cavoodles." But the author never anthropomorphizes the animals.
Frosty, the dog that begins the memoir, "was like walking a rolling thunderstorm" when they first rescued him. Only Zusak doesn't call it a rescue; he calls the pound "the group home." His irreverent tone will catch readers off guard as they grow fond of these three rescues. He also delivers offhand insights on writing: "There are so many books inside us, it seems, but they mostly remain unready."
When Zusak began to write about the dogs, he was afraid of failing them: "So much of my writing life has consisted of primarily that emotion. Abject fear." Some of the things the dogs do are flinch-worthy: "There have been murders, for example, and cover-ups. (I promise, I can explain.)" No humans, but it's harrowing. Yet readers grow to love the pups as much as Zusak, his wife, Mika, and their two children, Kitty and Noah, do. Their first dog, Reuben, slows his walk to keep stride with Kitty. And Noah would "protect [Frosty] with his life." Zusak places readers right in the struggles and victories of the dogs and their humans. As anyone who loves dogs knows, there's heartbreak but also so much love. --Jennifer M. Brown