Customer Reviews

My Life in Dog Years

5 star:		(49)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Oh! This is a book worth reading. Basically Gary Paulson devotes each chapter to one of several dogs that played an important role in his life. An animal lover to the hilt, Paulsen will introduce you to dogs that protected him, hunted with him, played with him and just hung out with him on his ranch.

Each story is tender and gives the reader glimpses into Paulsen's childhood (riddled with alcoholism and neglect)as well as his adulthood (filled with dogs, horses and a person or two!)

Written at a sixth grade reading level, this book would be a great read-aloud at bedtime for kids six and up. Both kids and adults will want to get up and hug the family dog goodnight once they finish a single chapter in this gem of a book. What a find!

Until I read this book, I never thought about how profoundly a pet can influence one's life. There's something miraculous and amazing about our relationships with animals, even though we tend to take them for granted. Gary Paulsen has distilled that magic into eight vignettes, stories of eight dogs who have been a part of his life. I read this aloud with my son and we laughed and sighed and sniffed back a few tears, then hugged our pets a little more tightly. A few of the stories end sadly but there's a good mix, many of the dogs live to a happy old age.

My Life in Dog Years

By: Gary Paulsen

I choose to read My Life in Dog Years, because I really love animals and onthe cover was a picture of a dog which is a book that sounded like something I would be very interested in. (The dog was also really cute!) I read the back and it sounded pretty interesting . I was about each dog that he had owned in his life, how each of them impacted him in their own special way. It was really interesting how he had totally different relationships with each of his dogs, some were his friends some

were the boss, some were equal no better or worse than any other person on this planet.

Gary describes his life with the dogs that most impacted his life. He describes the joy and pain that they individually brought to him through out his life. His parents never seemed to be out partying or drinking everyday. They just ignored him as if he were part of the furniture in their house. Gary grew up alone but with the company of his dogs.

The dogs in his book had many different impacts on him. Some were hisfriends and others were his equals, some saved his life and some needed to be saved and Gary was always there to help. Once Gary was walking in a field when his next step would be on a rattle snake, Gary knew he couldn't get out of the way fast enough when Snowball came charging threw and attacked the snake saving Gary's life. Gary knew he could never repay Snowball for what he did, risking his life for his owner.

Gary had many different dogs growing up and you would think that one out of ten dogs wasn't what Gary was looking for. But no Gary always found something special about each individual dog. There was "the first dog (Pg8).", "A good friend (Pg.19).", and "The wild dog of the Alaskan North (Pg.101).' He didn't talk to his dogs as if they were animals but as if they were human just like him.

All of Gary's dogs always seemed to change his life in some way. Each dog found a way to change Gary into a better person. He learned to respect himself and others, and to always believe in your friends. Gary didn't have his parents around almost all his life but always found hope in his dogs. They were always there for Gary, just what a mans best friend is supposed to do

I chose this book, bcause it really looked interesting. This book is about the author, Gary Paulsen, and some of his dogs he has owned. My favorite dog was Josh, because he was the smartest and he always watched over his owner and friends. My favorite part was when another dog of his, Quincy, had jumped out of Paulsen's car into Dairy Queen. Over all, this book was too good to put down.

Gary Paulsen has owned many great dogs over the years, and each dog has its own special characteristics and abilities, in their own special way. Throughout the book, different dogs help, protect, and make Paulsen laugh during his bad times. Among some of the dogs were Cookie, the sled dog who saved his life; Snowball his favorite friend that he owned as a little boy in the Philippines; Ike, his mysterious hunting dog, who would never follow Paulsen home. Instead he would wait until the next day when Paulsen went to hunt, and he would be right by his side. One of my favorite parts of the book was the little twist about where Ike was always going, and why he didn't follow Paulsen home. Dirk was Paulsens K-9 bodyguard. Although he was small, don't let him fool you, he would take on any challenge that would lye in his path. Josh is a brilliant Border collie that Paulsen still owns to this day. Josh was more human than dog. When Paulsen would talk to him, he would not only listen, but in a way he would talk back. Josh has great talent, and is always watching out for everyone. My Life in Dog Years is definitely a five-star book. Paulsen used great imagery that you can relate to in your own life experiences. It was the perfect length book, that was not to long, not too short. It was a very detailed book that made you want to keep reading until you were finished. This book will make you laugh and make you cry. My favorite dog was probably Josh because of how smart he is, and how fast that learns things. All of the dogs were great companions, and had a close relationship with Paulsen. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves dogs, or is just looking for a good read.

My Life in Dog Years was a really interesting book, I really enjoyed hearing about how all of Gary Paulsens life he's always been with dogs! It was fascinating to hear how intelligent each dog was, in their own way. The one thing that I disliked about this book was how every dog died, and I know that happens but it was so sad. I would recommend this book to dog lovers, and anyone else who is just looking for a good book!

This is my daughter's book. I didn't plan on reading it. The first story hooked me. This book is a dog lover's must read. It's quick, yet stoic, full of respect and a certain wisdom. If you've ever owned and loved a dog, you'll love this book.

What a wonderful book, simply written in E.B. White style, with each chapter a jewel. I cried at the end of each installment! I purchased three copies as gifts for others. A must read, and not just for children, for doglovers of all ages.

This book is about a man named Gary Paulsen and all of the dogs he has owned that have had an effect on his life. Each chapter is about a different dog, and what it did to make the dog special to Gary.
Because I am a "dog lover" I thought this book was great. It is written very well and I think it was worth reading. I like how it is about all different kinds of dogs, each dog has different personality and a different story. It's pretty exciting to read because you're always wondering what the next dog is going to do, whether it is saving someone's life or just making someone smile. Until you read My Life In Dog Years you probably won't realise the impact our pets or animals can have on our lives. There is an amazing relationship that we have with our pets and this book captures that.
I recommend My Life In Dog Years to only people who truly love dogs. If you are not a "dog person" then I highly doubt you would enjoy this book. My Life In Dogs Years is written at a 6th grade level, but it is read by all different ages. It is a great book and if you love dogs then I guarantee you will love this book.

This book is very well written and is an excellent choice for teachers who are teaching the genre "autobiography". Though the book centers around the adventures of dogs in Gary Paulson's life, it gives the reader true insight about why Gary is the way he is and why he writes the kind of literature he does. I read this as a read aloud to my students and you could hear a pin drop for 20 minutes each day. One of my students even chose to write his autobiography in this format. A must for every teacher's library!