Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog | Ted Kerasote

Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog | Ted Kerasote | A Lesson We All Can Learn

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Merle's Door: Less...

	Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog Ted Kerasote Harcourt, 2007 - 416 pages average customer review:based on 178 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

This was the best book I have ever read

This was the best book I have ever read, it is so good that I am starting it over. I have never read a book more than one time. Anyone who loves dogs should read this, it is much more than just a story of a man and his dog. I also found this book very educational along with being entertaining. I laughed on almost every page, I didn't want the book to end. Very easy read, I took the book with me everywhere and could not put it down.

A Lesson We All Can Learn

As the owner of two large Giant Schnauzers I know what it is to have strong willed dogs. One is extremely smart and the other suffers from panic disorder. I could see so many things in Merle's Door that I can relate to with my two. It has opened my eyes to what my Shiner Rose might be thinking when she gives me certain looks. What Whiskey River might not be understanding when he goes into a panic attack. I admit that some of the references did go on somewhat extensive but brought you full circle to what we might be seeing today. Most dogs do not have the luxury to be a free spirt as Merle was but we have to find a way to do for our dogs what we can within their environments. I totally can identify with the bond that Merle and Ted had. My husband and I have that same relationship with our two Giants and marvel each day at their abilities and their limitations. I admit that the ending was very sad as we all expected but Merle passed with grace and obviously touched a lot of peoples hearts and lives. Animals are very special if you allow them to be a true part of your family. I think that Ted was right in allowing Merle to live out his life as Merle would have wanted. I definitely give this book five stars.

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Merle and Ted- A Winning Team

Ted Kerasote has written, by far, the best book I have ever read that shares the life of a dog. This book has haunted me. It will make you laugh-out-loud, do some deep thinking, and at times maybe even cry. As a personal opinion, it makes "Marley and Me" seem like a tale for children.

While critics say that he tends to anthropomorphize Merle's looks and behaviors- any person who has ever loved and lived with a dog will realize the truth in his descriptions. Mr. Kerasote blends Merle's story with educational facts on animal behavior without ever making it a painful transition from one to the other.

I fell in love with Merle (and the author). If you have never read a book of this type- this is the one to choose. It will change your way of thinking for life.

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The best of a thousand

I've read a thousand books, and most I'd consider good as I try to be discriminating with my reading. By good, I mean in the sense that I've been delighted, enriched, made to laugh out loud, and shown countless insights into living and this life we share. With no reservation, I count Merle's Door my favorite.
No doubt the author's singleness, his passion for the outdoors, and his home ground, Jackson Hole, played a large part in my relating so well to the story. Most of all, though, Kerosote captures something very, very special and opens our eyes to a real and magnificent world that heretofore we never gave a thought.
Compelled by the beautiful meaning in this true account, I closed the cover on the last page one morning at 3:00a.m. I was standing in my kitchen reading those final pages after having set all the house's lighting ablaze trying as I could with false courage and faltering hope to stave off my tightening throat--but alas to no avail.

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Realistic story of life with a true companion dog

Merle's Door is a great dual-biography...of both the author as well as his companion dog, Merle. As is true with most dogs, their story is interwoven with that of their human family...and, like their human counterparts, would be quite incomplete without the companion tale of the rest of the family. Merle's story would be incomplete with Ted's and, clearly, Ted's story would be incomplete without Merle.
I found parts of the book to be touching, parts are unquestionably sad, and much of it similar to the things I have often thought and felt about my dog Bear. Needless to say, Bear is among the great dogs known to mankind...loyal and true, able to read my moods, but quite independent and able to make himself happy.
No one who professes to be a "dog lover" should miss this book. Ted Kerosote is thoughtful, well written and clearly an animal lover. Although he may be more of an "outdoorsman" than many of us "city slickers", he is able to touch the heart and mind of any dog lover. Read it!

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