Whitley Strieber's Blog - Posts Tagged "cats"

I have just published a short novel called the Journey to Dog Heaven. It's mostly from the viewpoint of a dog, and in his voice.

It's about the choices that must be made in life, and a dog who makes a really hard one.

The book comes from deep within my life and childhood, when I was a scruffy little Texas boy running around with a scruffy little dog behind me.

My dog was a rat terrier named Candy, so called because she loved candy, was an expert thief, and would defend her candy to the death once she had it.

I also feel that we owe our pets something. They have come to depend on us, and too often they get let down. So the Journey to Dog Heaven is also meant to encourage adoption, especially in families with kids. And cats will do very nicely, too!

In the book, Bob, an Aussie cattle dog living on a Texas ranch, sets out to follow his master Buddy, without understanding that he's gone off to war and cannot be found.

Bob struggles mightily and makes an incredibly hard choice. But, then again, hard choices are part of life on the path to every heaven, including dog heaven.

You can get an ebook now for $4.99. Hardcover and audio will be along in a few weeks.

Find out more about Dog Heaven and all my books on Strieber.com

I've just published the audiobook of Journey to Dog Heaven. It's available on Audible.com and you can find out more about it on my book page, Strieber.com. The ebook is on most ebook outlets, including Amazon. I do the reading on the audio book--or rather, the actor who lives in here with me does.

Dog Heaven about dogs and their love, and the love we share. Mostly, the story viewpoint is that of a ranch dog called Bob. His master is Buddy and Buddy has to leave the ranch for reasons that Bob cannot understand.

There follows Bob's journey, searching for the love of his life. It is a journey taken by many a dog, but also one that we take in our hearts, searching for love we have lost.

When I was a boy, I had a little rat terrier called Candy, and while she was not a big ranch dog, I did model Bob's love for Buddy and loyalty to him on Candy's for me. But I didn't really need a single model. All dogs are the model. Once give, a dog's love is forever.

Candy used to sleep beside me at night. We shared the same pillow. When my wife first came down from New York to meet my family, she peeked in on me while I was sleeping, and saw Candy in her usual spot. She thought, 'do I have a rival?'
No, but I learned a lot about love from that little dog.

She waits for me still, I know it, just as Bob waits for Buddy. It's often been said that animals don't go to heaven. If that's true, then it can't really be heaven, not as far as I am concerned.

The Journey to Dog Heaven is also about how just plain lovely it is to have a pet in your life. There's a little rhyme in it I'd like to share:

A Message from Bob the Dog

"There’s a whole bunch of us down at the shelter, down at the pound, plenty of dogs and cats to go ‘round. We got lost or abandoned or sumpin’ went wrong. But if you’re comin’ you better hurry, ‘cause they don’t let us wait here for very long."

How about it? Somebody might have your name written on their heart.

To learn more about Dog Heaven, go to Strieber.com.