All the Dogs of My Life

There were fourteen dogs and they make up the bulk of these stories lightly colored in with her biographical details. Some of her dogs evoke great affection, at least one not so much after he was neutered and lived only to eat and sleep and sadly end his days too soon. Her descriptions are mostly upbeat and witty as she traipses across Europe displaced by war and changing fortunes. One wants a straight forward biography of [a:Elizabeth von Arnim|2098|Elizabeth von Arnim|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1364066879p2/2098.jpg]. She's cagey about sticking to the dogs and teasing us with her own life changes. And, my goodness, according to GR, "After her first husband's death, she had a three-year affair with the writer H.G. Wells, then show more later married Earl Russell, elder brother of the Nobel prize-winner and philosopher Bertrand Russell. She was a cousin of the New Zealand-born writer Katherine Mansfield." But I enjoyed the book. show less

This book is terrific for animal lovers. Others may find it quaint and sentimental.. I loved it. It is a sort of biography of the author by way of the dogs she's owned. So... one learns that the author was once married to a much older German count. We never know too much about this man, only about the relationship she has with the count's first wife's dog. There is a bit of a pragmatic nature to some of the 14 stories she tells about her dogs. Some of the stories are absolute romances. I promise, a couple of them will make one tear up or even weep. A perfect light read.

"La autobiografía de una escritora tan cautivadora, sagaz y avanzada a su tiempo como Elizabeth von Arnim recorre sus recuerdos a través de los perros que la acompañaron desde Pomerania a Inglaterra en sus amores, desilusiones, matrimonios, cambios, amistades y duelos en el viaje de la vida". (Descripción editorial).

I'm not interested in dogs but this was quite interesting. the library only has 3 of her books.

Unas originales memorias narradas a través de los perros que la autora tuvo a lo largo de su vida.Como deja bien claro Elizabeth von Arnim en estas espléndidas memorias, el amor humano es voluble, y el que brindan los perros a sus amos, inquebrantable. A sus 70 años, Von Arnim pasa revista a maridos, amantes y amigos, pero hace especial hincapié en el retrato de sus perros que, en su opinión, ponen de manifiesto la mezquindad de los hombres. Unas memorias rebosantes de ironía y lucidez en todas sus páginas.