Play Book Tag discussion

Saving Simon: How a Rescue Donkey Taught Me the Meaning of Compassion / Jon Katz
3.5 stars

Simon was a donkey close to death in a tiny enclosure with no shelter when he was rescued. Jon Katz had a small farm and offered to take Simon in and, along with his wife, bring Simon back to health and happiness. Jon indicates in this book that he also benefitted from having Simon, learning about compassion along the way.

I really liked the parts about Simon and the other animals on Jon’s farm (and neighbouring animals, particularly the 101-year old’s elderly blind pony, Rocky). When he philosophized about compassion, though, I didn’t agree with him. Yes, I am more compassionate toward animals than (some) people; I feel like animals are more like kids or babies, in that they are dependent on humans and aren’t always able to change their circumstances, whereas humans are more likely to be able to have the power to do that for themselves (or they can ask for help). He doesn’t address this when he insists that we should still be compassionate towards the humans who abuse animals. He did tend to repeat himself at times, though I think that’s a small thing. The stories about the animals were great, though, and that really was the bulk of the book.

Your review caught my eye, Cindy. I used to follow Jon Katz in his blog, back when blogging was popular. I know that he has a deep love for animals. Glad that you enjoyed the book!

I first found Katz through reading his short story collection, Dancing Dogs: Stories, which I really enjoyed.

Holly R W wrote: "Your review caught my eye, Cindy. I used to follow Jon Katz in his blog, back when blogging was popular. I know that he has a deep love for animals. Glad that you enjoyed the book!

I first found K..."

I haven't read anything else by him, but I was thinking about it. Thank you for the suggestion!

Cindy, If my memory serves me right, I did skip over a story or two that dealt with putting a dog down - just couldn't read about that. I do remember thinking that Katz really understood dogs, when I read the other stories.