Remarkable Story of an Owl and His Girl

wag.mado@evpl — Fri, 07 Aug 2009 18:13:00 GMT

Yes, that's the subtitle of the book I just finished. Wesley the Owl is a must for anyone who has ever been in love with an animal. The story is written by Stacey O'Brien, who was a lab assistant at Cal Tech when she adopted a 4-day-old barn owl after he suffered permanent nerve damage and could not survive in the wild.

The story, which spans close to 20 years, is filled with fascinating anecdotes of the relationship that developed between these two sentient beings. O'Brien's education as a biologist helps the reader understand many interesting facts about barn owls, but that does not keep her from falling deeply in love with Wesley. The story has a deeper meaning which is about unconditional love and commitment and is referred to many times in the book as "the way of the owl."

I found this memoir humorous, heartwarming, educational, compassionate, and I had a hard time putting it down. I'll never think of barn owls the same again.

A day after finishing the book, I tuned in to Oprah where she featured a man whose best friend is a Grizzly Bear. That segment was followed by a friendship between an elephant and a dog at the Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald Tennessee -- the same place where Evansville's beloved "Bunny" lived out her last few years. Must have been my week for animal relationship stories!

"Story of Edgar Sawtelle" is Oprah pick!

MediaPhile@evpl — Fri, 19 Sep 2008 22:10:00 GMT

And the winner is.................

I am going to play the Devil's Advocate here and ask why this is such a sensation! There was alot of buzz about it at the American Library Association conference earlier this year. The reviewers have been ecstatic and several friends after reading it have spoken its title in awe.

To fill you in a little, it is a novel about a mute boy named Edgar Sawtelle growing up surrounded by dogs on a homestead in Wisconsin. His parents are continuing the family legacy by breeding dogs. Not any dogs -- mind you -- but a new breed of dogs named after them. This breed, the product of careful selection to produce a perfect specmen, is highly intelligent (perhaps even approaching human capabilities). Edgar's best friend is his absolutely wonderful dog, Almondine.

I really enjoyed Edgar's interactions with Almondine and the other Sawtelle dogs. But I grew weary of the various trials and tribulations of the extended family. And I won't even mention my disappointment with the end.

So help me out here. Read it first, then tell me what is so great about it -- in your own words! Am I just not literary enough?

Search results matching tags 'reviews' and 'oprah'

Remarkable Story of an Owl and His Girl

"Story of Edgar Sawtelle" is Oprah pick!