From ANIMAL PEOPLE, December 1996:

A Cat’s Christmas
by Stefanie Samek
Illustrated by Larry Ross
Dutton (375 Hudson St., New York,
NY 10014), 1996. 180 pages,
hardback, $14.95.

This is a fun little frivolity to tuck
in your pocket for dull moments, or stress
reduction breaks, or for a hostess gift all will
enjoy, probably on the spot. Author
Stefanie Samek’s previous book, Purring In
The Light: Near-Death Experiences of Cats,
I carried about inflicting aloud favorite bits
on all and sundry. One word of caution:
while Samek mostly spoofs the secular, the
pre-Christian, etc., the very devout might
disapprove of her use of some of the most
cherished old carols; but then, how much
harm could a small furry paw do after so
much crass commercialization? Samek
crams the 180 pages with stories, poems,
and songs given feline remake.

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From ANIMAL PEOPLE, November 1996:

Dog Love
by Marjorie Garber
Simon & Schuster (1230 Avenue of the Americas,
New York, NY 10020), 1996. 346 pp., $24, hardback.

Marjorie Garber, director of the Center for Literary
and Cultural Studies at Harvard, is perhaps best known for two
groundbreaking scholarly works on what used to be called
abnormal sexuality––Vice Versa: Bisexuality and the Eroticism
of Everyday Life and Vested Interests: Cross-Dressing and
Cultural Anxiety. Both challenged readers to rethink perceptions
of just what “normal” means.
Not surprisingly, Garber is at her best in Dog Love
when discussing the sexual aspects of dog-keeping, both overt
and covert, normal and aberant, from sexual self-identification
with the dog, a common factor in male reluctance to neuter
dogs, to active sexual involvement with dogs. Her discussion
is frank without being smarmy, she cites verifiable sources,
and would seem credible but for two points.

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From ANIMAL PEOPLE, November 1996:

Dogs For Dummies
by Gina Spadafori
IDG Books (919 E. Hillsdale Blvd., Suite 400, Foster
City, CA 94404), 1996. $19.99, 384 pages, paper.

Gina Spadafori, who occasionally writes for ANIMAL
PEOPLE, is better known as America’s most respected
pet columnist, syndicated by major metropolitan newspapers
across the U.S. and by America OnLine. Spadafori’s day
job as real estate editor for the Sacramento Bee conditions her
to get the facts first, while the challenge of writing interestingly
on a daily basis about a subject as mundane as real
estate has taught her how to write how-to without inducing
quick sleep.

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From ANIMAL PEOPLE, November 1996:

Choosing & Caring
For a Shelter Dog:
A Complete Guide to Help You
Rescue & Rehome a Dog
by Bob Christiansen
Canine Learning Center (POB 10515, Napa, CA
94581), 1996, 190 pages, $12.00, paperback.

Dog Tales
From the Heart
edited by Sue A. Hershkowitz
High Impact Publications (Scottsdale, AZ 85254)
1995. 208 pages, $9.95, paperback.

If you’ve ever wondered how a publisher sets its
price for a book, Bob Christiansen’s Choosing & Caring for
a Shelter Dog will keep the trade secret a mystery. Just shy
of 200 pages, Choosing fits more into one compact volume
than you would expect. Every aspect of living with a dog is
noted, including much information not found elsewhere.

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