A book about a stray dog that the author took in that had been abandoned. Kirkus: The Pulitzer Prize?winning journalist and bestselling author puts a fresh spin on a classic theme: A wounded man rescues a wounded pet that in turn rescues him.Bragg?s engaging tale of his life with an unruly Australian shepherd is the latest of his tragicomic memoirs of his family, which began with All Over but the Shoutin? and continued with Ava?s Man and The Prince of Frogtown. Together, these books comprise one of the finestĄand certainly the most comprehensiveĂ‚ÂĄgroup portraits of a poor, White Southern clan to appear in the past quarter-century. This installment finds the 60-year-old author back in Calhoun County, living in his mother?s basement (working ?exactly eleven steps from where I go to sleep?) after bouts with pneumonia, heart and kidney failure, and non-Hodgkin?s lymphoma that led to ?chemo brain.? Lonely and depressed, Bragg took in an anarchic, one-eyed, badly injured dog named Speck that had run wild in woods and pastures but stuck with him. With typically deadpan wit, the author writes, ?This did not mean I was his master, merely his alibi, coconspirator, bailsman, and the driver of his ambulance.? Speck tried to herd a one-ton truck, picked a fight with a cottonmouth, and acted as if ?every wayward possum was a sign of the end times.? But when Speck reveled in simple joys on his mother?s farm, Bragg found that ?to see a living thing that happy? was worth the difficulties. Their story ends with a few narrative threads droppedĂ‚ÂĄone involving Bragg?s brother Sam, who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer during the writing of this book and died after its completionĂ‚ÂĄbut the abrupt conclusion doesn?t diminish an estimable cycle of books. Let?s hope they will someday appear in uniform editions with an introduction that would help readers see them all in context.A celebrated Southern memoirist delivers a spirited book about a hell-raising dog and his effect on the author?s life.

This is one of the best books I’ve read. Rick Bragg brings his dog, his brother, and his mother to life and makes you fall in love with them. And unlike most dog memoirs, the dog doesn’t die at the end. ( )

Required reading for dog lovers—so good! And it’s been far too long since I’ve read Rick Bragg. I still haven’t read All Over but the Shoutin’, but reading this reminded me how much I love his writing. I won’t let so much time pass before reading him again.
This book is about a particularly wild and trouble prone (I don’t think “accident prone” is quite accurate) rescued Australian Shepherd, but along the way, Bragg touchingly portrays his mother, brother, and his personal struggles as he spins yarns about his “bad dog” and his misadventures. The result is a very funny, moving book. I can’t recommend it enough. ( )

Best dog book in years

This ranks right up there either Does Stars and A Dog's Purpose. Bragg is a skilled writer, placing you right in a scene, pulling you wholeheartedly into each story with the first phrases. And comedic timing? He nails it every time, so hard that it still works the second, third, and fourth time you reread a passage. I want to buy a copy for every dog lover I know. ( )

Lovely book about a man and his dog. A wild dog at that. A story that shows how love and caring can transform the messiest of creatures. And allowing them to still be themselves.

Nothing negative to say. ( )