Dogphoria is by far one of the coolest books I’ve read all year. It makes a fabulous holiday present for any dog lover in your life.
The book itself is beautiful to look at; it’s about 7 inches by 10 inches and maybe half an inch thick. It’s a hardcover book with an oh-so-adorable picture of a dog starting out a car window.
Each page contains a quote about life from a famous author, poet or philosopher on the left, and a wonderful photo of a dog living out that principle on the right. Here’s one of my favorites.
The quote, to the left, is from 17th century French novelist and playwright Alain-RenĂŠ Lesage, who says, “I am happy and content because I think I am.” To the right is the happiest looking retriever you’ll see anywhere.
The photographs are all wonderfully artistic, taken by photographer Jim Dratfield who travels the world taking photos of pets and people with their pets. As CBS News Correspondent and Veterinarian Debbye Turner Bell writes in the forward, reading this book is like looking through an old family photo album. While we’ve never met any of the dogs in the book, somehow we feel like we’re looking at old friends. I challenge you to flip through a few pages and not smile
Two of the dogs featured in the book are actually assistance dogs from Leader Dogs For the Blind, to which a portion of the proceeds will go. The last few pages give some information about the organization, as well as biographies of the assistance dogs being photographed (including the happy retriever you see above named Lucy, who now helps a former doctor who developed multiple sclerosis.
If you know someone who’s crazy about dogs, this is one of the most beautiful and meaningful gifts you can give.
