JOIN USBarking up the right tree
Some stories stay with you long after you read them. The Book of Dog was one such volume for me. After all, it made me try something I have never done before: pet a dog. For many, this sweet act of love comes naturally and willingly, but for people like me — the ones who jump back in fear if a dog is approaching — it takes essay after essay on dogs and doglore to attempt this seemingly simple feat.
The Book of Dog edited by Hemali Sodhi presents 45 pieces that pay tribute to man’s best friend. They say one shouldn’t judge a book by its cover but the title and cover illustration (credits to Tarang Maheshwari) are enough to make any dog lover pick it up. For me, however, it was the line-up of contributors. The book includes stories by leading Indian writers like Gulzar, Ruskin Bond, Anita Nair, Anuja Chauhan, Devdutt Pattanaik, Tishani Doshi, Fiona Fernandez, and Jerry Pinto, to name a few. There are also original pieces by journalist Rajdeep Sardesai, chef Vikas Khanna, and comedian Cyrus Broacha. The list doesn’t end here. “I was also very keen to feature stories from animal rescuers/ individuals who’ve dedicated their lives to animal welfare — and some of their stories are the most moving ones,” says Sodhi.
Something to chew on
The brief given to the contributors, she goes on to explain, was simple: Essays/stories on that special dog (or dogs), the profound influence a dog has had in their life, or a particular incident around a dog. The 45 pieces do just that, covering ground through different forms like poetry, prose, personal essays, visual essays, haikus, and more. Just like two dogs, no two essays in the book are alike. But they all deliver on emotions and will either leave you smiling or sniffling or like in my case, with a terrible feeling of having missed out on something vital. The feeling compounds as I read Prerna Singh Bindra’s conversations with her endearing pet Doginder or how Piku, Nilanjana S Roy’s ‘borrowed dog’, still has a fond place in her heart. But it was probably Naomi Barton’s piece that cemented the missing: “I wanted a friend, not a lover — but more. How much more? All of it. I haven’t found a word for that yet. So Melo came home.”
And just like that, I started looking at dogs differently, each essay of the book giving me a new perspective to chew on. Special mention to The Way of Sunlight by Jerry Pinto, Tingmo’s Day by Tingmo and Arunava Sinha, and A Conversation with Doginder by Prerna Singh Bindra. These three stories give a unique voice to their four-legged protagonists (Sinha’s Tingmo even masters haikus, including one with 17 words, all saying one thing: Food) and it’s almost impossible to not smile at this endearing look into their hearts and minds. When the words get heavy with themes like loss or grief — an inevitable reality every dog parent must face — there are visual stories like The Dogs of Marine Drive by Sooni Taraporevala and Chaos in a Coupe by Divya Dugar, both with photographs that are bound to leave your heart full.
Traverse this book in any way you like; you could start in the middle, end or even check the index and stray towards a title that calls out to you. Don’t forget to turn to the back of the book to put a face to all the dogs you read about. The Book of Dog is a book about love that has been made with lots of it too. Both the editor and all the authors have contributed for free with all royalties going to registered animal welfare charities. Surprisingly, Sodhi was also someone who was terrified of dogs, until she opened her heart, first to Simba, and then to other fur babies. With them came love, loss and profound life lessons.
Dog lovers will definitely relate while non-dog lovers might find themselves getting curious. As Sodhi says, “Give them — and yourself — a chance and you won’t regret it.” And if you need a gentle push, start by giving this book a chance. Who knows, you too might end up dog-earing some pages that touch your heart.