The Mythology of Dogs: Canine Legend and Lore Through the Ages [Hardcover]

Gerald Hausman (Author), Loretta Hausman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 1997

Taken from Greek myths, African folktales, Old English yarns, and tales of Biblical prophets, this A-to-Z, breed-by-breed treasure trove of dog fables and legends catalogs both the best-loved and most moving dog stories of over 70 of the world's leading breeds.

Editorial Reviews

From Kirkus Reviews

To this season of the dog book, add this sprightly celebration of canine anecdotes. Wishing to get to the heart of what makes a dog a dog, the Hausmans, both mythologists, poured over sacred oral narratives, conjectures as to our prehistorical relationships with various mutts, and contemporary dog stories. What they deliver here is a compendium of these findings, laid out alphabetically by breed: 50 backgrounds of purebreds, 40 additional dog tales, drawn from global sources, explicating and dramatizing our fascination with Bowser (they also provide what appear to be American Kennel Club specs on established purebreds). Dog lovers will doubtless be captivated, but so too will the casual browser of this collection of arcana and mythological baggage, savoring the odd tidbits: the quirky Airedale hailing a cab, the pit bull's ability to sniff out ``evil intent from the slack manner of any man,'' how the African basenji lost its bark, and why one should never try to displace a coonhound from the porch swing. Other tales relate how the whistled tune of a stranger turned the bulldog from a bully to an upstanding citizen, why the springer spaniel bit the pope's toe and thus ushered in the Church of England, and the curious tale of the weimaraner that liked to talk on the phone. And what is one to make of the story that the urinating ghost of a dingo created the Magellanic Clouds? Well, probably little other than to marvel at the sheer inventiveness of it all, for one of the great pleasures of this book is to see the art of myth-making laid as bare as possible. Good stuff entertainingly told, and a gold mine for dog fanciers. (35 photos, 35 illustrations) -- Copyright ©1996, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Review

"A wonderful dictionary of dogs, and a book that is truly different. The Mythology of Dogs has every reference you ever wanted to look up, and at the same time is fascinating just to read." --Cleveland Amory, author of The Complete Cat and The Cat who Came for Christmas

"Recommended Reading." --USA Today

"Written in brisk detail, generous with anecdote, legend and fact, and equipped with illustrations, [The Mythology of Dogs] is a wonderful guide to the whys and wherefores of dogs." --The Boston Globe

"Entertaining and penetrating...each chapter gives us particular insight and a unique facet of the multifaceted canine complex." --Dr. Michael W. Fox, from the introduction to The Mythology of Dogs

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 278 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr; 1st edition (February 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312151772
• ISBN-13: 978-0312151775
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #573,199 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Mythology of dogs, July 25, 2006

By 

Up North (upstate, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mythology of Dogs: Canine Legend (Paperback)

Mostly a dog book with descriptions of the different breeds, their histories, interesting facts and a few references to mythology. It is an interesting book about dog breeds, but does not have much content on mythology.

4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not very mythological, November 26, 2004

By 

David Dunham (Seattle) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Mythology of Dogs: Canine Legend and Lore Through the Ages (Hardcover)

I was looking for a book on mythology, not a book on dogs. While there were one or two interesting myths, primarily this was a book of anecdotes. The fact that it has a chapter for each breed should have been a giveaway...

I suppose if you're a dog lover, you won't be as disappointed as I was.

1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Nice, March 28, 2000

By 

Barbara - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Mythology of Dogs: Canine Legend (Paperback)

It is an entertaining book, which gives you information regarding all breeds and their history. Fun to read, you will discover things you didn't know regarding the past of our little Friends.