Three Wild Dogs and the Truth

Peta's Review

Any devotee of history will know how dogs have featured prominently over the centuries, faithfully standing beside their master. Alexander the Great was accompanied on his conquering by his loyal Peritas. Henry VIII’s hounds Cut and Ball never failed him on a hunt; he provided them with velvet silver spiked collars as their reward. The all-conquering Napoleon was gazumped in the bedroom by Josephine’s jealous pug Fortune. On the collar of Edward VII’s pooch was engraved “I am Caesar. I belong to the King.” Mad, bad and dangerous to know Lord Byron erected a tomb in honour of his devoted Boatswain, and Elizabeth Barrett Browning dedicated several poems to her beloved spaniel Flush. And now we have the author Markus Zusak and the three wild dogs, Reuben, Archer and Frosty, who rescued him.

As a dog tragic I was entranced by Zusak’s memoir, Three Wild Dogs, from the first sentence: “There’s nothing like having a punch-up with your dog on a crowded city street.” While the book is a radical departure from his previous historical fiction, Zusak knew for a long time that he had to write about his and his family’s beautiful, terrifying, comedic life with their pets (as well as the three dogs, there were Bijou and Brutus, the feline counterparts). In a recent interview, Zusak said he refers to Reuben, Archer and Frosty as “group home dogs” rather than rescue dogs because he believes that it was the animals who “rescued” him. Being the owner of several ‘pound dog people’ myself, I am acutely aware that they absolutely come with problems. However, they are worth every challenge they present. Yes, you do have to take responsibility for them, but as Zusak affirms, they offer us a beautiful, full life, providing us with moments which stay with us. We all need a little chaos in our life, don’t we? And as history shows, our canine companions give their unconditional loyalty. True visceral life experiences. Life after all constantly throws us curve balls. It is how we catch them, duck them, or overcome them, that matters.

Three Wild Dogs is heartwarming, funny, and at times achingly sad. Zusak vividly describes the chaos, joy, challenges and tears he and his family experienced with Reuben, Archer and Frosty (not forgetting Bijou and Brutus). You do not have to be a dog-tragic to enjoy this story. There is something for everyone – adventure, fun and intrigue, as well as insights into Zusak’s writing process. I wholeheartedly recommend this book. A handsome hardcover, it will make a perfect gift for …well, anyone.

Publisher's Review 

There's a madman dog beside me, and the hounds of memory ahead of us. It's love and beasts and wild mistakes, and regret, but never to change things... 

What happens when the Zusaks open their family home to three big, wild, pound-hardened dogs - Reuben, a wolf at your door with a hacksaw; Archer, blond, beautiful, deadly; and the rancorously smiling Frosty, who walks like a rolling thunderstorm? The answer can only be chaos: there are street fights, park fights, public shamings, property trashing, bodily injuries, stomach pumping, purest comedy, shocking tragedy, and carnage that needs to be seen to be believed ... not to mention the odd police visit at some ungodly hour of the morning. There is a reckoning of shortcomings and failure, a strengthening of will, but most important of all, an explosion of love - and the joy and recognition of family. From one of the world's great storytellers comes a tender, motley and exquisitely written memoir about the human need for both connection and disorder; a love letter to the animals who bring hilarity and beauty - but also the visceral truth of the natural world - straight to our doors and into our lives, and change us forever.