Luis Carlos Montalvan (–2016)

The author spent two tours of duty in Iraq in the early to mid-2000’s. He came back suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), agoraphobia, as well as physical injuries. In this book, he tells his own story of how he found solace and companionship in a service dog named Tuesday. He relates how his disabilities impaired his life, the process he went through to acquire Tuesday, and how the dog improved his ability to cope. The author is outspoken in his criticism of the politics involved in the Iraq war and how they adversely impacted the soldiers in the field. I learned a great deal about the training of service dogs, what it was like on the front lines of the war in Iraq, and how it feels to live with PTSD. Although one of the main characters is a dog, this book is not for children due to the war-related violent content; however, the author has written two other books geared toward kids (Tuesday Takes Me There and Tuesday Tucks Me In). My only quibble with the book was a good amount of repetition. Overall, I found it a positive story about how animals can soothe emotional scars and improve the quality of life for people living with physical or psychological disabilities. Recommended to those interested in bonds between humans and animals, the psychological impact of war on veterans, and training of service dogs.… (meer)