This particular book was not mentioned on my TBR list for the year, but I happened to come across the audiobook, which was only about 3 hours long, and I decided to give it a try. I am a sucker for sappy books and movies that involve horses and dogs, so I figured why not??
I only recently got Audible, which I decided would be my Christmas gift to myself, and this particular story was included in my Audible subscription. Reviews on Amazon also state that this is a Hallmark movie, so I guess this particular story is available in all formats!
A Dog Named Christmas by Greg Kincaid
Description (From Amazon):
In this heartwarming novel, author Greg Kincaid tells the tender story of how one very special dog changed the lives of his adoptive family and an entire town forever.
Todd, they always want you to adopt a dog. That’s what they do. Besides, we don’t need another animal around here, and most definitely not a dog.
When Todd McCray, a developmentally challenged young man still living on his parents’ Kansas farm, hears that a local animal shelter is seeking temporary homes for its dogs during the days leading to Christmas, he knows exactly what he wants for the holidays. His father objects, but Todd’s persistence quickly wins out. Soon the McCrays are the short-term foster family for a lovable pooch the young man names Christmas.
But what about all the other dogs who will be forced to spend the Yuletide season in cages? In the days that follow, Todd uses his special gifts of persuasion to encourage his hometown to participate in the Adopt a Dog for Christmas Program. What follows from his small act of kindness will teach his family, and his community, about peace on earth and good will toward men and animals.
This Book Was a Great Listen Over the Holidays
I listened to this book while I set up my own Christmas tree. It was really a nice, heartwarming tale (tail? too much?) I enjoyed the narrator who had a voice that was very easy to listen to and it probably would have lulled me to sleep if the content wasn’t so funny. There are a lot of very endearing, light one-liners. It isn’t really laugh-out-loud hilarity, but little quick snips by the narrator definitely deserved a few chuckles. Think grumpy old man making sarcastic remarks.
The story follows Todd, a young man with Down Syndrome, and his dad. The relationship between Todd and his dad is so sweet and I really appreciated the respectful way that the author wrote about Todd.
The story about the Adopt a Dog program had me wishing that my local shelter had a program like that!
A Dog Named Christmas was just an all-around good time. Is it the most riveting novel with twists and turns? No. But if you want a book to read between a few heavy novels, this book is a nice light read that won’t make you cry too much (though a few tears were definitely shed!) and won’t break your heart.
Were There Any Flaws? *Spoilers*
I found the ending to this book a little perplexing, There’s the classic trope of “the dog that has no true home,” where the dog is known to wander from family to family, seemingly knowing which families need him most. At the end of the book, a previous owner shows up to pick up his dog and the main character and Todd give up on owning him for themselves. But then they return to the shelter and the dog had escaped the shelter cage. Everyone is sad, the previous owner seems unbothered even though he drove hours to pick up the dog, and Todd and his dad return home.
When they get there, the dog is waiting for them. And the book just ends with the family being happy that the dog chose them. This left me wondering about what happened to the previous owner? Did they inform him? Wouldn’t his kids and grandkids be devastated that he just let someone else take the dog? I don’t know, but this felt a little unanswered for me.
Obviously, this isn’t a large enough issue to make the book not worth reading, but it just wasn’t as satisfying of an end as I had wished.
You can find A Dog Named Christmas on Goodreads here!
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