DOG'S BEST FRIEND

A British journalist and nonfiction writer explores the "rich, diverse, perplexing and complicated" relationship between humans and canines.

Garfield wrote this book to answer one question: How did humans go from hunting with the wolf ancestors of modern dogs to pampering them with everything from "furs and bejeweled collars" to "electrically heated daybed[s]"? The human-canine relationship began roughly 15,000 years ago when human beings "settled in permanent places and threw things out.” The bond between them grew so strong that scientists have hypothesized that certain dog features, such as expressive eyebrows, emerged as a result of "natural selection based on the preferences of humans.” Personalizing dogs was an accepted practice as far back as the ancient Greeks. But where the Greeks gave them names to describe "temperament or ability,” owners in modern European countries like Britain and France tend toward giving human names like Alfie, Bella, or Marcel, as though to emphasize their humanness. Cultures have long celebrated dogs in literature and art and made them the subject of spectacles like dog shows and track racing. However, such modern trends as breeding "designer dog[s]” and the penchant to anthropomorphize them—as suggested by William Wegman’s portraits of Weimaraner dogs in "all manner of human garb"—suggest a darker side to dog love: Human affection for canines may be "spilling over into disrespect…[and] exploitation,” and it may also be taking away from their animality, which is part of their appeal. In this well-researched and absorbing narrative, written with the same enthusiasm that characterized Just My Type and On the Map, Garfield explores the human-dog relationship with humor, intelligence, and warmth. The author also wisely reminds readers that it is the very "dogness" of canines that brings out the best in human beings and binds them to a "wider world…of responsibility and sociability."

A dog fancier's delight.