Thursday, February 01, 2007

January Synopsis

Below is a list of what I read this month, in the order I read them. Also linked on the sidebar by author's last name.



The Perfect Husband, Jeanne Savery

A Sprinkle of Fairy Dust, Elizabeth Bevarly, et al

The Curse of Chalion, Lois McMaster Bujold

Valiant, Holly Black

Paladin of Souls, Lois McMaster Bujold

The Hallowed Hunt, Lois McMaster Bujold

The Dragon King's Palace, Laura Joh Rowland

6 comments:

CindyS said...

Wow - 7 books! You did good!

CindyS

Bob & Muffintop said...

Thanks Cindy!

Megan said...

Hey, bookwormom--

Got your comment; I'm happy to offer what advice I have! I definitely recommend adult dogs over puppies to almost anyone. If Linus hadn't appeared outside my apartment, I was going to wait until I got out of school and adopt a retired racing greyhound. I had it all planned out--which, of course, was my big mistake! ;-)

How old is your daughter? Do you have a yard? How many hours would the dog/puppy be alone each day? These are all questions to keep in mind when you are making your decision. Puppies are great because they are cute, and you can bond them to you and train them to be the kind of dog you want them to be. On the downside, puppies are expensive, high-maintenance, and will do all sorts of messy and embarrassing things while they are growing and learning. Puppies are exactly like toddlers, except they're faster and you can't put diapers on them! :P

There are many, many dog shelters in your area and lots of dogs available for adoption. Adopted animals DO remember who saved them, and they are grateful. It's true that shelter and rescue dogs are less of a known quantity than those obtained from breeders, but a lot of dog shelters are using temperament tests and re-training to make their dogs better companions and more appealing adoptees.

I don't know what kind of dog you or your daughter had in mind, but you might consider retired racing greyhounds. In spite of their speed, they are pretty lazy and low-maintenance, and retired racers have already been professionally trained and socialized. You don't have to worry about housebreaking or end up like my parents, one of whose dogs is an 80-lb Lab/Rottweiler mix who spent the entire first year of his life outside, unsocialized, and now can't stand to have his claws clipped! Anyway, it's a suggestion. There is a great rescue organization in the DC area that I had my eye on.

I'm from Baltimore originally and am moving back to the Balto/Washington area when I finish with school this spring. I'd love to hear from you; please feel free to e-mail me at meganomics@gmail.com if you have any more dog questions or anything.

Best of luck--especially with convincing your daughter to wait!

PS. I loved all of Jeanne Savery's books with the matchmaking tiger; my favorite was the one about the blind lord who fell in love with his hired reader!

Megan said...

D'oh! I forgot; the best book I've read about training and raising dogs is Brian Kilcommons' "Good Owners, Great Dogs." I don't follow all his suggestions to the letter, but his overall philosophy is spot-on.

Cheers!

MG

Bob & Muffintop said...

Thanks Megan! I'll post a little more about Daughter & the possible doggy later in the week.

Bob & Muffintop said...

Also- I think I'm gonna have to hunt up all of the tiger books.