Product Description
While on a camping trip, Ted Kerasote met a dog—a Labrador mix—who was living on his own in the wild. They became attached to each other, and Kerasote decided to name the dog Merle and bring him home. There, he realized that Merle’s native intelligence would be diminished by living exclusively in the human world. He put a dog door in his house so Merle could live both outside and in.
A deeply touching portrait of a remarkable dog and his relationship with the author, Merle’s Door explores the issues that all animals and their human companions face as their lives intertwine, bringing to bear the latest research into animal consciousness and behavior as well as insights into the origins and evolution of the human-dog partnership. Merle showed Kerasote how dogs might live if they were allowed to make more of their own decisions, and Kerasote suggests how these lessons can be applied universally.
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Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #652 in Books
Published on: 2007-07-02
Number of items: 1
Binding: Hardcover
416 pages
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
Humorous, jubilant and touching by turns, this story of the relationship between man and dog is informed by the author's grasp of animal research and his attachment to Merle, a stray dog he adopted. A Labrador mix, Merle first appeared while the author was on a camping trip. Kerasote (Out There: In the Wild in a Wired Age), an award-winning nature writer, decided to take his canine friend home to rural Wyoming. This chronicle of their 13 years together is interspersed with studies by animal behaviorists that strengthened Kerasote's desire to see Merle as a responsible individual rather than a submissive pet. Merle set his own eating schedule (though not without early mishap), refused to hunt birds (although not elks) and, according to the author, possessed a range of emotions and sentiments similar to those of humans. Kerasote tends to anthropomorphize Merle's every look and movement, but this narrative is entertaining and Kerasote's strong love for Merle and enthusiasm for life in the wild will win over many readers. Kerasote's joyous relationship with Merle is balanced by a bittersweet account of a close relationship the author had with Alison, a neighbor and fellow dog owner. Kerasote's last weeks with the dying Merle are beautifully rendered. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
From AudioFile
When an abandoned dog tags along with Ted Kerasote on a rafting trip, its the start of a long life-changing experience, with a learning process that goes both ways. Patrick Lawlor seamlessly portrays Kerasote, who shares personal anecdotes about his dog, Merle, and ruminates on the history of the relationship between dogs and humans. Lawlor puts plenty of laugh-out-loud moments into the anecdotes and keeps the history lively, too. He even comes up with a good voice for Merle in Kerasotes conversations with the dog. By the time listeners get to Merles later years, they will share the bond Kerasote has with him. J.A.S. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine
From Booklist
*Starred Review* Merle showed up at the San Juan River at the same time Kerasote and his river-rafting friends arrived. Merle looked at Kerasote as if to say, "You need a dog, and I'm it." He accompanied the group down the river and then went home to Wyoming with Kerasote. A dog who was eager to please and almost trained himself, Merle learned the ways of bison, ground squirrels, and coyotes. Merle then taught Kerasote the fullness of the hunt, leading Kerasote to his favorite prey. But, after Kerasote installed a dog door, the main thing Merle taught him is that a dog develops to his full potential, becoming the dog he was meant to be, when allowed to make his own decisions. Merle developed a life of his own, patrolling the small settlement where they lived with his dog companions, and yet was always very aware of Kerasote and his schedule. In telling Merle's story, Kerasote also explores the science behind canine behavior and evolution, weaving in research on the human-canine bond and musing on the way dogs see the world. Merle is a true character, yet Merle is also Everydog. An absolute treasure of a book. Bent, Nancy
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Customer Reviews
The best of a thousand
I've read a thousand books, and most I'd consider good as I try to be discriminating with my reading. By good, I mean in the sense that I've been delighted, enriched, made to laugh out loud, and shown countless insights into living and this life we share. With no reservation, I count Merle's Door my favorite.
No doubt the author's singleness, his passion for the outdoors, and his home ground, Jackson Hole, played a large part in my relating so well to the story. Most of all, though, Kerosote captures something very, very special and opens our eyes to a real and magnificent world that heretofore we never gave a thought.
Compelled by the beautiful meaning in this true account, I closed the cover on the last page one morning at 3:00a.m. I was standing in my kitchen reading those final pages after having set all the house's lighting ablaze trying as I could with false courage and faltering hope to stave off my tightening throat--but alas to no avail.
Merle and Ted- A Winning Team
Ted Kerasote has written, by far, the best book I have ever read that shares the life of a dog. This book has haunted me. It will make you laugh-out-loud, do some deep thinking, and at times maybe even cry. As a personal opinion, it makes "Marley and Me" seem like a tale for children.
While critics say that he tends to anthropomorphize Merle's looks and behaviors- any person who has ever loved and lived with a dog will realize the truth in his descriptions. Mr. Kerasote blends Merle's story with educational facts on animal behavior without ever making it a painful transition from one to the other.
I fell in love with Merle (and the author). If you have never read a book of this type- this is the one to choose. It will change your way of thinking for life.
This was the best book I have ever read
This was the best book I have ever read, it is so good that I am starting it over. I have never read a book more than one time. Anyone who loves dogs should read this, it is much more than just a story of a man and his dog. I also found this book very educational along with being entertaining. I laughed on almost every page, I didn't want the book to end. Very easy read, I took the book with me everywhere and could not put it down.
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