Be All That You Can Be: READ

“In the case of good books, the point is not how many of them you can get through, but rather how many can get through to you.”

—Mortimer J. Adler

wo books have recently changed my mood, my convictions, and quite possibly the direction of my career.

I’m bursting to discuss them with someone, but have yet to find anyone who’s read them. Both are ripe with anecdotes illustrating animals’ altruism. And both cite plenty of research confirming what many of us already knew: Animals are individuals who may be different from humans, but are not less than humans.

There’s heartache in both books, too. Of course, most of it stems from human stupidity and egocentricity. But there’s enough uplift to make you happy just to share this world with animals. And enough horror to prompt you to make a difference for them.

Please run to your nearest library and check out The Pig Who Sang to the Moon: The Emotional World of Farm Animals by Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson and A Small Furry Prayer: Dog Rescue and the Meaning of Life by Steven Kotler. (Try the paperback edition of A Small Furry Prayer. The hardcover has more typos in it than I thought possible for a publisher or typesetter to ignore.) The first is a quiet, lovely read; the second is a raucous, realistic look at dog rescuing—complete with foul sights, smells, and language. Both engage and enlighten.

While I can’t promise you the same profound experience I had with these books, I can promise you a stronger or altered sense of your place in the universe.

[Drop cap by Jessica Hische; photo from NASA.]