A Dog Called Perth: The True Story or a Beagle [Hardcover]

Peter Martin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 5, 2001

From the instant they spotted the forlorn puppy in the kennel, as she stared at them with her intense eyes, Cindy and Peter Martin knew she was the one for them. Almost immediately, Perth became a central part of the household, a dog for all dogs. Always left to run free, Perth became an indefatigable explorer, often gone for hours or entire days, but her infallible compass always brought her back home. From her adoption in upstate New York, her incredible survival in the wilderness of Vermont to her later adventures in the English countryside, Perth displayed the same devotion, unshakable trust, and unstinting love. An entertaining, beautifully written homage to a very special dog.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

It's possible that those who have never shared their days with a dog might find this deeply personal paean to a precocious beagle somewhat twee. Chances are, however, they'll find themselves caught up in the love story, converts to the world of dogs and the people whose hearts they capture. Martin, an English-literature scholar (A Life of James Boswell), pulls out all the stops in detailing the 21 years he and his family shared with Perth, a strong-willed pet who was, if the author is to be believed, a god among dogs always clean (with her own sweet "groggy-doggie" smell), fiercely loyal, impossibly intelligent (she learned 18 tricks in mere days) and totally trusting. Plucked as a pup from a kennel in upstate New York, the canine heroine of the story follows the Martins through teaching appointments in Ohio and Florida before accompanying them to a small village in Britain for the last half of her life. It's a charming memoir that gains almost adventure-story momentum when Martin describes his family's frantic search for Perth, who ran away from her Vermont caretakers during a summer the Martins spent abroad. The beagle survived months in the wilderness and found shelter at an isolated fishing camp before being reunited with her owners. Martin narrates this melodramatic chapter in the lives of a dog and her humans with a grace that could well bring tears to a soft-hearted reader's eyes. (Nov.) Forecast: There are nearly as many books about dogs as there are fleas looking for a place to feast, but this one, handsome enough to stand out as a point-of-purchase impulse buy, begs to be hand-sold by booksellers.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Books about pets can be charming, adorable, moving, enchanting. They can also be cutesy, contrived, annoying. Thankfully, this changeofpace volume from a respected author of literary biographies (of Alexander Pope and James Boswell, for example) falls into the first category. Perth, a blackandbrown beagle, was utterly adorable, an adventurer, a member of the family, not so much a pet as a small, fourlegged person. But this isn't just the story of a dog; it's the story of a young couple in their midtwenties, newly married and ready to make a life together, finding out who they are and who they could be. Martin is a graceful writer, painting detailed pictures with only a handful of words, and we sink into the book the way we sink into a comfy chair: with a sigh and the anticipation of a pleasurable few hours. Martin and his wife adopted Perth in 1965; she is long gone now, but, as long as we're inside this book, she is a living, breathing animal, full of love. David Pitt
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Arcade Publishing (November 5, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1559705973
• ISBN-13: 978-1559705974
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,423,176 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Disappointed, March 28, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: A Dog Called Perth: The True Story or a Beagle (Hardcover)

I'll admit that I'm one of those softhearted animal lovers who loves to read touching stories about favorite pets (and often ends blinking back tears during the final farewell scene). I thought I would enjoy A Dog Called Perth:A True Story of A Beagle, not only because of my fondness of animals in general, but because I presently have two dogs whom I adore & indulge, and because I grew up with a beagle who looked much like the bright-eyed dog on the cover of this book. The description of the book promises that this is a touching true story written by Peter Martin, the owner of Perth. Perth herself is billed as a spirited, independent, and unique dog.

The book details the ups and downs of daily life with Perth, a beagle whom the Martins vowed never to restrain in any way. It follows her story from her adoption by the Martins in upstate New York to the end of her long life in a small village in England. Despite the scope, it is a short book which took only a few hours to finish.

Unfortunately, I was disappointed by A Dog Called Perth. Martin's inattention to the training of Perth resulted in her becoming a habitual biter as she grew older, and the book describes several instances in which Perth attacked family friends. Late in the book, when Perth is in the twilight of her years but has just managed to bite Martin's neighbor with such ferociousness that the man is not able to work for three weeks, Mr Martin helplessly sighs that Perth is too old to be trained to do any differently. (His excuse years before for not training her not to bite when the behavior first appeared? Well, she was only biting because didn't like Ohio, where the Martins resided at the time.) It became frustrating to read the author's blithe dismissals of Perth's bad behavior, and laughable as he would go on to explain in great detail why the incidents were always someone else's fault anyway. Dogs are simple, engaging creatures to begin with, beagles particularly so. It is telling that Martin needs to go to such lengths to try to convince us that underneath all the misbehavior, Perth really was a very charming dog. Mr. Martin, if it roams like a dog, growls like a dog, and bites like a dog... then in all likelihood it is a roaming, growling, biting dog whose alleged charms may be lost on your audience.

If readers are not disturbed by Martin allowing his dog to run rampant (and I will admit that the theory he uses to justify his laissez faire treatment of Perth - that such an intelligent and independent animal should not be constrained - seems appealing in a romantically foolish way), then they may alternatively be annoyed by his writing style. If I hadn't read more on Mr Martin's background and discovered that he is a university professor and author of scholarly books on English Literature, I would have thought that his past literary experience consisted of writing dime store romance novels. This book is bursting with overwrought, melodramatic prose (particularly as Martin flies off into yet another tortured monologue attempting to justify Perth's latest transgression) which made me laugh out loud at times.

I have no doubt that Peter Martin and his family loved their dog and felt that their lives were made better by her presence. However, I'm certain that many of his neighbors and friends who had run-ins with the unpredictable animal did not feel that their lives were enriched by her. And I as well feel no better for knowing the story of Perth. A Dog Called Perth is a book that did not need to be written and is best avoided.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A True Account of Life with a Beloved Dog, March 25, 2002

By 

Chris F. Willis "Media1der" (West Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Dog Called Perth: The True Story or a Beagle (Hardcover)

I just finished A Dog Called Perth and understand the outrage of those both appalled by the biting and other negative behavior by the beagle, Perth, and the seemingly irresponsible attitude of the starry-eyed young couple who adopted her. Being a dog owner myself, I had trouble understanding how the author was able to do such a fine job of teaching Perth to be streetwise and even do a few parlor tricks but failed to be able to teach her not to draw blood from well-meaning neighbors.
Having said that, I realize that the Martins adopted Perth back in 1965, a very different time from today. They didn't have the luxury of dog training videotapes or bookshelves stocked with "Beagles for Dummies" or "Idiot's Guide to Beagles." Not that it necessarily would have mattered; for better or worse, and sometimes much worse, the Martins approached their life with Perth the way they wished to live themselves, a dreamworld life free from normal constraints. I'm not sure I can imagine the author pulling Perth down by the collar to give her a "time out" and establish himself as her master and pack leader. Perth's spirit and spunk are precisely what the Martins found most endearing about her; the idea of working to break her of those traits were as appalling to them as that of tieing her to a chain in the yard.
While I agree with the reviewer who stated that the book should definitely not be used as a training guide for today's dog owner, A Dog Called Perth is an honest and true portrayal of how one young couple chose to bring a dog into their lives, the experiences they shared as they struggled and grew together, and how life with the rambunctious Beagle they named Perth colored their lives forever. Anyone whose ever loved a dog deeply may not agree with the Martins' approach to raising Perth, and may even find some of their actions downright ill-conceived, but will nonetheless certainly understand their intentions and the intensity of the feelings behind them.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book to which Beagle owners will relate, January 1, 2002

By 

Bass Man (Tampa, FL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Dog Called Perth: The True Story or a Beagle (Hardcover)

As a Beagle owner, I was drawn to the book by the physical resemblance of Perth to our own Beagle. Both my wife and I took turns reading the book aloud during some of our travels over the Holidays.

The book speaks volumes about the personality traits of Beagles; fiercely loyal, independent, sometimes rebellious, but above all loving and forever active. The only exception we took with the story was that the author stated they wanted a Beagle since it would not shed so much. After 2 years of life with a Beagle, we could easily start making sweaters with all of the discarded hair. That discrepancy aside, we quickly identified ourselves with the young couple and felt all their joys and frustrations.

Surprisingly, the book speaks of much more than the life of a dog; emphasizing one family's commitment to live their life on their own terms. In their dog, they look for the qualities that they themselves strive to attain. Despite this, Perth is always a dog, imperfect, but beautiful just the same.

The book is great for a family to read aloud and will leave them with more of which to think than you might expect. It is well written and easy reading that will keep both young and old readers interested.