If dogs could talk…It’s a thought many dog owners have had, especially those who care for animals with mysterious pasts. “Where did this dog come from?” they wonder. “How has the dog survived?” First-time author Monty Newport has spent years rescuing dogs, and in Tuff Guy, he imagines a tale worthy of any rescue dog.
“Every dog that has lived a life has a story,” Newport writes in Tuff Guy. “For those lucky enough to start and finish their lives in the same forever home, they are usually well known and documented with pictures, memories and tales from their families.” But what about the strays? The rescued dogs?
Newport tells a story of love and loss, allegiance and abandonment. In this moving novel, Tuff, nearly deaf and blind, shows up on a blustery, rainy day in rural Alabama, a mess of matted fur, blistering skin, and a hunger that drives him to wander. Alone and lost and most of all hungry, he forges on.
Newport creates a life for Tuff, who started in this world as Prince, a pampered, beloved little snow-white Maltese. When Prince’s owner is killed in a traffic accident, he is thrown from the car and wanders, lost and injured, for weeks before reaching his final destination – a family who helps him live out his life.
With Tuff Guy, Newport creates a kind of every-dog tale, a story that draws readers in with its memorable characters and simple prose. “It had been a long time since he had felt comfort and love,” Newport writes about the forlorn little dog. “All he knew right now was pain and hunger…”
Tuff Guy is the story of a little dog’s journey, but more than that, it’s a story of survival and chance. It’s the kind of inspiring read that might just lead readers to their local animal shelters.
Also available in hardcover and ebook.
