The Dog Who Danced
A Novel
-
- €10.99
-
- €10.99
Publisher Description
"Multiple hankies, dog lovers…this is an emotional read." –Library Journal
If there's been a theme in Justine Meade's life, it's loss. Her mother, her home, even her son. The one bright spot in her loss-filled life, the partner she could always count on, was Mack, her grey and black Sheltie – that is, until she is summoned back to her childhood home after more than twenty years away.
Ed and Alice Parmalee are mourning a loss of their own. Seven years after their daughter was taken from them, they're living separate lives together. Dancing around each other, and their unspeakable heartbreak, unable to bridge the chasm left between them. When they find a little black and gray dog by the side of the road, they take him in.
Fiercely loyal, acutely perceptive and guided by a herd dog's instinct, Mack has a way of bringing out the best in his humans. Whether it's as Justine's partner, or just the ebb and flow of a family's rhythms, it's as though the little Shetland Sheepdog was born to bring people together.
Everyone needs Mack. But to whom does the little dog who danced belong?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Justine Meade has spent most of her 43 years on the move. She left home young, got in and out of an early marriage, and had a son who, unhappy with her restless life, went to live with his father. When Justine learns that her father is dying, she hitches a cross-country ride with a long-haul trucker from Seattle to Massachusetts, hoping for a resolution to their relationship. Her companion on the journey is Mack, a sheepdog trained to dance. But at a rest stop, her ride drives off, unknowingly taking Mack with him. Later abandoned, Mack is found by an older couple still grieving after their teenager daughter's suicide years earlier. Meanwhile, Justine reaches her father in time to revisit the fight that sent her away from home. She gets a new perspective on the past while Mack, nearer to Justine than she realizes, helps the old couple heal. When chance reunites Justine and Mack, she decides to get back in touch with her son. Wilson persuasively adopts a dog's perspective from time to time in a story full of clich and sentiment. Fans of Wilson's One Good Dog, or new readers looking for a heartwarming tale of the bond between human and animal, will find plenty to enjoy.
