The Dog I Loved: A Novel
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- Create Date：2020-12-06 04:19:40
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Susan Wilson
- ISBN：9781250078155
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Summary
New York Times bestselling author Susan Wilson is back with another signature heartwarming novelone that begs the question: Can a dog lead the way to finding one's humanity？
After spending years in prison for a crime she didn’t intend to commit， Rose Collins is suddenly free。 Someone who knows about the good work she has donetraining therapy dogs while serving timehas arranged for her early release。 This mysterious benefactor has even set her up with a job in the coastal Massachusetts community of Gloucester， on the edge of Dogtown， a place of legend and， for the first time since Rosie's whole world came crashing down， hope。 There she works to rebuild her life with the help of Shadow， a stray dog who appears one rainy night and refuses to leave Rose’s side。
Meghan Custer is a wheelchair-bound war veteran who used to be hopeless， too。 Living at home with her devoted but stifling parents felt a lot like being in prison， in fact。 But ever since she was matched with a service dog named Shark， who was trained in a puppy-to-prisoner rehabilitation program， Meghan has a brand new outlook。 Finally， she can live on her own。 Go to work。 And maybe， with Shark by her side， even find love again。
Two strong women on a journey toward independence whose paths collide in extraordinary ways。 Two dogs who somehow manage to save them both。 A tale of survival and a testament to the human spirit， The Dog I Loved is an emotional and inspiring novel that no reader will soon forget。
After spending years in prison for a crime she didn’t intend to commit， Rose Collins is suddenly free。 Someone who knows about the good work she has donetraining therapy dogs while serving timehas arranged for her early release。 This mysterious benefactor has even set her up with a job in the coastal Massachusetts community of Gloucester， on the edge of Dogtown， a place of legend and， for the first time since Rosie's whole world came crashing down， hope。 There she works to rebuild her life with the help of Shadow， a stray dog who appears one rainy night and refuses to leave Rose’s side。
Meghan Custer is a wheelchair-bound war veteran who used to be hopeless， too。 Living at home with her devoted but stifling parents felt a lot like being in prison， in fact。 But ever since she was matched with a service dog named Shark， who was trained in a puppy-to-prisoner rehabilitation program， Meghan has a brand new outlook。 Finally， she can live on her own。 Go to work。 And maybe， with Shark by her side， even find love again。
Two strong women on a journey toward independence whose paths collide in extraordinary ways。 Two dogs who somehow manage to save them both。 A tale of survival and a testament to the human spirit， The Dog I Loved is an emotional and inspiring novel that no reader will soon forget。
Editor Reviews
Praise for The Dog I Loved:
“With a deft hand and keen eye， Susan Wilson brilliantly illuminates the emotional power of dogs to lighten our hearts and transform our lives。” Nick Trout， New York Times bestselling author of The Wonder of Lost Causes
"Broken souls are made whole in this beautiful story about the power of connecting。 Susan Wilson does a gorgeous job of inhabiting her characters - both human and canine - in a book that captivates on every page。 The Dog I Loved is tender， warm， insightful， and ultimately， very human。" Ellen Meister， author of The Other Life
"The Dog I Loved is gorgeous and wrenching， psychologically astute and compassionate。 I have always wanted to know what dogs think， and now I do。 Susan Wilson gets into the hearts and minds of her complicated， brilliantly drawn characters， both human and canine。 She has always been a writer of tremendous heart and insight; this is her best book yet。" Luann Rice， bestselling author of The Secret Language of Sisters
Praise for A Man of His Own:
"Touching and heartfelt。" Modern Dog magazine
“A War Horse for dog lovers。” Booklist
“A Nicholas Sparks–ian romantic drama， with an 'everyone loves a dog' twist。” –Kirkus
Reviews
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I enjoyed reading this book。
Carisa
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3。5 stars， but I rounded up because DOGS！ I really， REALLY liked this book。 I wanted to love it， but it just didnt quite get there for me。 Not only did the book interweave Meghan & Rosies stories。。。it also went from past to present for Rosie， add in a diary from the 1830s， and 2 different dogs POV and youve got A LOT going on。 I feel like the story had SO MANY things going on that nothing was fully fleshed out， so it left me wanting more。 Also， the ending was just soooo choppy & rushed， 3。5 stars， but I rounded up because DOGS！ I really， REALLY liked this book。 I wanted to love it， but it just didn’t quite “get” there for me。 Not only did the book interweave Meghan & Rosie’s stories。。。it also went from past to present for Rosie， add in a diary from the 1830s， and 2 different dog’s POV and you’ve got A LOT going on。 I feel like the story had SO MANY things going on that nothing was fully fleshed out， so it left me wanting more。 Also， the ending was just soooo choppy & rushed， and honestly the last page was kind of confusing。 So if anyone can offer me insight， that’d be great lol 。。。more
samantha vogel
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This book taught readers about love， life。 A woman trains a guide dog while shes in prison。 She befriends the other woman who adopted the guidedog。 The woman in prison is in prison for accidentally murdering her x fiancé。 He was an abuser and treated her like crap。 She ran him over by accident。 His mother pressed charges and never forgave her。 Her own family looks at her in disgust。 Definitely a great book to read。 Many themes。 I recommend This book taught readers about love， life。 A woman trains a guide dog while she’s in prison。 She befriends the other woman who adopted the guidedog。 The woman in prison is in prison for accidentally murdering her x fiancé。 He was an abuser and treated her like crap。 She ran him over by accident。 His mother pressed charges and never forgave her。 Her own family looks at her in disgust。 Definitely a great book to read。 Many themes。 I recommend 。。。more
Chere Weaver
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Wonderful story！
CLW
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Not for me， jacket description sounded good but the story was boring， lack of character development， skimmed the last third just to see how it ended。
Linda M。 Vest
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A saving gift for both of them。
Nicky
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It was pretty much exactly what I expected。 Writing style was ok- nothing exceptional but definitely not bad。 Im a sucker for dogs so this was right up my alley in that regard。 I appreciate that the author pointed out that service dogs should not be approached as pets and fawned over - that was a new lesson for me that I will adhere to in the future。 Lots of family dysfunction from different perspectives driving the odd relationships but they seemed authentic based on the varying points of view。 It was pretty much exactly what I expected。 Writing style was ok- nothing exceptional but definitely not bad。 I’m a sucker for dogs so this was right up my alley in that regard。 I appreciate that the author pointed out that service dogs should not be approached as pets and fawned over - that was a new lesson for me that I will adhere to in the future。 Lots of family dysfunction from different perspectives driving the odd relationships but they seemed authentic based on the varying points of view。 Need to accept generational / religious class pressures in understanding character behaviors。 。。。more
geoffrey r goyette
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Thoroughly enjoyed this book。 The character development was excellent。 Very much appreciated the dogs thoughts。Never was sure how the story was going to end until the very end。 Couldn't put it down until I finished it。 Excellent book of real human emotions during stressful situations。
Irene Dutchak
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Beautiful， sensitive and perfect for dog lovers。 I couldn't put this one down。
Sharon
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HeartwarmingSuch a wonderful book， I had trouble putting it down。 Keep the tissue near by you'll need them by the time you finish。
Irmi Willcockson
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Predictable but pleasant to read。
Peg
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What a wonderful story of love， redemption， forgiveness。 Some cool history and very lovable dogs。 What more could one ask。 Lovely book
Katie
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Interesting premise。 Loved the friendship between Meghan and Rosie。
LeAnn J
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3 1/2 stars
Rebecca Wennlund
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I can't figure out why the dog on the cover is not any of the dogs in the book。 I thought it was entertaining （though absurd） to have the chapters from the dog's perspective。 I also could not figure out what the plot was。 We were to read this for our book club and it was a book we read before bed。 So many times we just shook our heads。 I didn't really care very much about any of the characters， but I really wanted Teddy and Megan to fall in love。
Michael crage
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Someone said that this was the best book she had ever read， so I had to read it。 It was a good book，also very easy to read。 There was no thinking about who did it or anything but enjoying the book。 It basically tells the story of two women and their dogs。 One was a wheel-chaired woman who got a service dog which gave her back her independance。 The other was a woman who had been wrongfully sent to prison and was released after seven years when found that she should not have been sent to prison。 Someone said that this was the best book she had ever read， so I had to read it。 It was a good book，also very easy to read。 There was no thinking about who did it or anything but enjoying the book。 It basically tells the story of two women and their dogs。 One was a wheel-chaired woman who got a service dog which gave her back her independance。 The other was a woman who had been wrongfully sent to prison and was released after seven years when found that she should not have been sent to prison。 Her dog was a stray that showed up at her door and became an emotional service-type dog to her。 。。。more
Julia
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I just love dogs。 This book embodies All that I love about dogs。 I also love Meghan and Rosie。 Their friendship and kindness is uplifting and refreshing especially when dealing with tough topics like PTSD， incarcerations and victims of violence resulting in wheel chairs。 We dont deserve dogs and this book reminds me of why we are so lucky they love us anyway。 I just love dogs。 This book embodies All that I love about dogs。 I also love Meghan and Rosie。 Their friendship and kindness is uplifting and refreshing especially when dealing with tough topics like PTSD， incarcerations and victims of violence resulting in wheel chairs。 We don’t deserve dogs and this book reminds me of why we are so lucky they love us anyway。 。。。more
Gena - My Book Reviews for You
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This was an inspirational novel！ The story is about mistakes and new beginnings。 Its about family and friendships。 And dogs and our bonds with them。 Meghan was injured during her military service and now requires a wheelchair。 When she stumbles upon a prison program that trains service dogs， she decides to apply。 She gets Shark， who was trained by Rosie。 Rosie is serving a sentence for a mistake she made years ago。 Meghan gains independence with Shark， but still struggles emotionally with her This was an inspirational novel！ The story is about mistakes and new beginnings。 It’s about family and friendships。 And dogs and our bonds with them。 Meghan was injured during her military service and now requires a wheelchair。 When she stumbles upon a prison program that trains service dogs， she decides to apply。 She gets Shark， who was trained by Rosie。 Rosie is serving a sentence for a mistake she made years ago。 Meghan gains independence with Shark， but still struggles emotionally with her disabilities。 Rosie became estranged from her family right before she went to prison。 The two women form a close friendship。 The story is about what they went through， their regrets， and the challenges they have to overcome。 。。。more
Lubomyr Zyla
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Dog lovers This was a fun book to read and shows what a benefit a dog can be。。。healing & touching the human heart。
Mary
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Great for dog lovers and learning about friendships and consequences。
Hanna
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Thank you St。 Martin's Press and Goodreads for my advanced copy。 Sorry it took so long to read。This book has a slow start and I'm not a fan of the author switching POVs。 The story was hard to follow and I feel like character development was lacking， especially for Meghan。 The additional perspectives of the two dogs also add nothing to the story。 This book is super dense， but the ending was rushed and attempted to be neatly packed up in a few pages。 There were some interesting moments but overall Thank you St。 Martin's Press and Goodreads for my advanced copy。 Sorry it took so long to read。This book has a slow start and I'm not a fan of the author switching POVs。 The story was hard to follow and I feel like character development was lacking， especially for Meghan。 The additional perspectives of the two dogs also add nothing to the story。 This book is super dense， but the ending was rushed and attempted to be neatly packed up in a few pages。 There were some interesting moments but overall I was just bored。 。。。more
Maureen DeLuca
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Solid 4 star and added 1 for the Dog ！ xx
Joyce Trickett
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PleasantEnjoyed description of environments as well as people &dogs。 Dogs point of view warms my heart。 Easy read， interesting， but not a page Turner。 Little suspense。
Cindy
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I loved this book！ I like the style in which its written， the plot is perfect， the characters are perfect。 And， of course， the dogs are perfect！
Mellanie C
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This was gritty and tender and a riveting read。 I'm passing it along for someone else to read。
Audiobook Accomplice （Gillian）
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Not my favorite Susan Wilson， but boy was I needing the great dogs in this audiobook！！！ My Full Review
Monica Emerson
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Excellent！
Vicki Versetti
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I really liked this book and every other book I have read of Susan Wilson。 If you liked books about dogs I would recommend this author。
Pam Redden
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Loved this book。 Wasnt what I expected， but far exceeded that。 I was really drawn into this story and all the history of the house and the dog。 Just so fascinating。 Loved this book。 Wasn’t what I expected， but far exceeded that。 I was really drawn into this story and all the history of the house and the dog。 Just so fascinating。 。。。more
Kathy
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The only thing I wasn't that crazy about were the chapters about the dogs - too many human feelings & thoughts given to them。
Sharon A
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I loved this book and all the dogs that Rose trained。 Rose went through a lot of hurt thoughout her life。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Dog I Loved: A Novel
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Dog I Loved: A Novel&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft