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Work InformationAmazing Gracie: A Dog's Tale by Dan Dye (2000)
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It was love at first sight. Amid the frenzied barking and prancing of a house full of Great Danes, one pup was shivering in the corner. Gracie. But when Dan Dye reached her, she struggled to her feet like a clumsy foal, raised her forehead to his, and announced, as clearly as if she had actually spoken the words, You know I'm the one. Now get me outta here! By turns funny, moving, tender, and inspiring, Gracie's tale is a treat for every dog lover. There is Gracie's first morning, racing around Dan in the snowy yard. Gracie's first determination to prove to her step-sisters, Dottie the Dalmation and Sarah the Black Lab, that she's one of the girls. Gracie's defiant romance with a pint-size charmer named Byron, a Boston Terrier from the wrong side of the fence. Then born of necessity, the eureka moment: When Gracie's delicate constitution starts turning into anorexia, Dan teaches himself how to cook, and in three days is baking her the cookies that will spur her appetite, launch Three Dog Bakery, and transform their lives forever. Courage. Compassion. Kindness. Soul. Tenacity. And joy, above all, joy. These qualities Gracie possessed in abundance, and shared with everyone, human or canine, who had the good fortune to cross her path. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)636.73Technology Agriculture & related technologies Animal husbandry Dogs Working DogsLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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When Dan Dye loses his beloved dog Blue, he descends into a real funk that doesn't entirely lift until a coworker takes him to meet one of her own Great Dane puppy's litter mates. This small (yes, they start out small) pup was shivering in a corner of the breeder's garage and slated to be euthanized because of her disabilities when Dan met her. Despite his misgivings, they immediately chose each other and this is the story of their life together from introducing her to his housemate's two dogs to her love affair with the tiny dog next door, from her dangerous disinterest in dog food that inspired the authors to learn to cook for her and ultimately start their dog bakery to the fame she achieved as the face of Three Dog Bakery, from her gentle acceptance of her successor to the final goodbye. Interspersed with funny and heartwarming stories about Gracie are insights into Dan's life and childhood, the way that it shaped him and the way that he finally learned to accept the past and embrace new definitions.
The beginning of the book, when Gracie is a goofy puppy and Dan is learning to make cookies for her is more relaxed and entertaining than once it focuses more on the formal creation of the bakery. Gracie is certainly still a part of the narrative then but it feels choppier, less focused on her, and more about founding the business and it quickly (at least in terms of the abbreviated timeline in the book) becoming a runaway success that brought them invitations to talk shows and the like. Although it was presented as a connected narrative, in many ways it was more like vignettes from the life of a dog and the man (yes, man rather than men as there's almost nothing about housemate and business partner Mark) who loved her. It was a sweet enough story, simple and quick. Most dog lovers will find this feelgood story of a man who rescues a dog and is rescued in turn resonates with them. Do have tissue ready for the end though because, after all, there is a picture of Gracie on the cover. ( )