Customer Reviews

Giv: The Story of a Dog and America

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Boston Teran is known for his crime novels, his debut, God is a Bullet is considered a cult classic, personally I would take away the word "cult" and just call it as it is!
I did however find that his follow up novels did not reach the standard of his debut and while I enjoyed them I felt that there was a better book in Boston Teran waiting to get out. Well that book has finally been written and it is called Giv: The Story of a Dog and America.

We first discover the dog called Giv on a lonely stretch of road as a former US soldier, just returned from Iraq, narrowly avoids running him over. Giv has been badly treated and is barely alive. The soldier (who as it happens is also in need of saving) takes care of Giv and sets out to discover how and why the dog ended up nearly dead on a desolate stretch of road.
We then follow the story of Giv from his days as a puppy, the people who come and go in his life, the kind and sometimes awful things that happen to him and the positive effect he in turn has on others.
Along the way some of the biggest events in recent American history are touched on, the Kennedy assassination, Hurricane Katrina and the war in Iraq.
The climax of the book, in which the soldier, aided by Giv attempts to find redemption through an heroic act will have the reader furiously turning the pages.

This is an extremely touching and moving book written in Boston Teran's usual hip style. I cannot recommend it highly enough, not just to dog lovers but also to anybody who likes to read great American fiction

Friends provide many inspiring stories, and man's best friend is no different. "Giv: The Story of a Dog and America" is a collection of stories about man and dog, and how they inspire one another. After saving a dog from near death, Boston Teran brings readers many inspiring stories from across the country about the unity of pet and master. An ideal gift for any pet lover, "Giv" will bring a smile to many faces.

The book came to me with the quote, "The Forrest Gump of dog books". This was so right on target. The author crafted the story so well that I had to go back to make sure the story was fiction. This is the story of Giv, a dog who travels all across the states. He survives a kidnapping, Hurricane Katrina, an abusive period only to be rescued by a Marine, who finds it was he that needed rescued. This Marine decides to find Giv's owner, which takes him across the country. Once again Giv rescues someone and it is believed that Give is lost. When found his past meets up with his future. This was a wonderful book. Each owner has a story. It is usually one that starts out negative until Giv enters the picture. Lives are changed because of him. Anyone who has ever had a pet, or read stories of animals who have rescued others, often giving their own life for the human will want to read this book. Just like in Forrest Gump, every negative thing that happens to him turns into something positive. I gave this book a 5 out of 5 rating.

I am not as eloquent as some on offering my review. I am a librarian and this book came through interlibrary loan back to the library where I work. I love animals and decided to read the jacket before I put the book back on the shelf. I ended up checking it out and read it in one sitting. I then offered it to my mother and she read it in a day (at age 81).
I am a voracious reader and this is a wonderful book. I highly recommend it as Boston Teran's style of writing for this novel is eloquent and descriptive in ways that only he can describe. ENJOY!

WOW, what a wonderful read! Books in good and bad form come across my reviewing eyes all the time, but rarely do I find a story that can capture my attention and awe from the beginning and keep it until the very last climatic word. Teran's tale is one of such books - it is woven with eloquent words that had me running the gamut of emotions from elated joy to heartbreaking grief, all sprinkled with laughter and anticipation. The unique voice and style of writing will often time make the reader forget that this is a story of fiction. Every single character, from Giv the dog, to his numerous owners, are all strong, believable and consistently intriguing, even the not-so-nice ones. I highly recommend this story to anyone who craves a solidly entertaining book, and is definite must-read for dog lovers.

Giv is a story that starts out about a dog that has survived starvation, beatings and most of all, being without love. " This is a great soul fallen on hard times."
He is wandering, lost. Where did he come from? Whats his story?
Anna is lonely. Lost her loved ones in a horrible auto. accident. She misses her husband and her dog that her husband had surprised her with one birthday. Living alone with her dog Angel, she senses something outside, she smells him. Going to the window, she see's him. He's leary of her and she puts out her hand to him. This begins her family, Angel and Giv. "Giv and Angel, Angel and Giv", they are inseparable and soon Giv is a daddy. But poor Giv, he has a tumor and its his time to go. Anna calls the puppy Giv.
This is where Giv's life starts.

The story is beautifully, poetically written.
" You are not alone old one, for heaven is here in the great trees you lie beneath, and in the named rocks around you, and the earth that will cover your bones. Soon, you will receive thy bounty."

Giv is stolen from Anna and the rest of the story is about bravery, compassion and love.

The end brings tears of sadness and joy.
Highly recommend this book.

What a powerful and compelling tale!
It gives hope in a troubled world.

It is a story for adults who need the strength and redemption it offers.
I am still turning it over in my mind and heart.
Poignant. Profound. Moving. Transformational.

Thank you, Boston Teran.

Giv - The Story of a Dog and America is BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL. BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL, BEAUTIFUL. That's one BEAUTIFUL for each chapter and the prologue.

This is one of the most moving books that I have ever read, it shows how pets can humanize and dehumanize us. When he is young, Giv is stolen from his owner by two young men, Jem and Ian, with a history of exposure of violence to dogs. Their father, in the biological sense, certainly not the nurturing sense, was brutal to their dog, punishing it severely when the boys had the nerve to stand up to him. Fortunately, Giv ends up in a loving home, but that home is lost when hurricane Katrina hits the New Orleans area.
Giv's life then takes a turn for the worst, locked in a crate and almost starved, he struggles to get free and manages to get far enough out of the crate to drag it out into the street. A car driven by Dean Hickok, Sergeant, late of the U. S. Marines, swerves to miss him and crashes. Hickok stays mobile long enough to seek help and becomes the guardian of Giv. Sergeant Hickok was part of the U. S. forces in Iraq and was seriously injured, losing a kidney when a metal stake went through him. He also witnessed several of his buddies being killed in the same action so he is struggling with the images that continue to haunt him.
This starts a symbiotic relationship; Giv slowly regains his strength while Hickok regains his ability to function in a non-combat environment. Hickok travels the country with Giv in an adventure that takes them to New Orleans and then to the western United States. The story also involves the struggles war veterans have with their memories, feelings of abandonment and their camaraderie due to their experiences in combat with violent death and dismemberment. In a dramatic climax, Hickok, a winner of multiple medals for valor in combat, teams with Giv to be a hero once again.
With so many strong currents to the plot, not all of which are mentioned here, it would have been easy for the track to be lost. However, Teran keeps them together so well that there is a strong and effective synergy, they all are essential to the story of the mighty Giv and his succession of "owners", not all of which are human(e).

"Giv: The Story of a Dog and America" by Boston Teran is just that; a story about a dog. And what a heartfelt story it is. From the time Giv is born he something special, but the tale does not begin there. It begins with Dean Hickok ex-sergeant who has returned from Iraq and is contemplating suicide when he almost runs over the starved and suffering animal that was Giv. From there we learn that Giv was stolen from his original owner and survived Hurricane Katrina. We learn of the people who come in contact with him and how everything comes full circle. This is certainly a story that brings out all sorts of emotion.