Good Dog. Stay. At first glance one might think this book is a short but sweet and elegant memoir 
of Anna's Black Labrador Retriever Beau. But it's more than that. Beau was a part of Anna's family for fifteen years. As Beau entered his final stages of life Anna states that "I saw a dog whose entire life, puppyhood to adolescence to middle and old age was inextricably entwined with those of two little boys with high, piping voices and their younger sister, who spent her formative years trailing her brothers around...Those boys are men, the girl a woman, their parents middle-aged. That is the story of my life and of Beau's."
I enjoyed reading Good Dog. Stay. for the reflection on Beau's life and also for the reminder of what a dog can be for a child growing up. This is something I think about a lot. We have a 3 year old daughter and an 8 year old Cairn Terrier. Our Cairn, Gilkey starts every morning by going into our daughter Posie's room to see if she's awake (she stares desperately at Posie until she wakes up) and Posie greets Gilkey with a "good morning Gilks". They truly have a special relationship...
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Sephie and I would never have been able to get Gilkey to sleep with Elmo...and have Elmo be in one piece in the morning. Posie has managed to convince Gilkey to "just keep keep Elmo warm"...mmm...how many people can say they've accomplished that with their Terrier?
Anna makes the observation: "For children, the point of having a dog is something like the point of having a mother and father. Our job is not to do but to be, not to act but to exist. We are bedrock, scenery, landscape, to be often ignored and then clung to during difficult or frightening or, occasionally, happy times. My mom, my dad, my home, immutable, to leave and then to return to at will and leave again."
The end of this book is predictable. You know what is coming. But it is worth turning the page. It's worth it..."After the vet packed up and the children had gone"...
Thanks Anna...
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