What I Thought You Were Dead is about:
For Paul Gustavson, a hack writer for the wildly popular For Morons series, life is a succession of obstacles. His wife has left him, his father has suffered a debilitating stroke, his girlfriend is dating another man, he has impotency issues, and his overachieving brother invested his parents' money in stocks that tanked. Still, Paul has his friends at Bay State bar, a steady line of cocktails, and a new pair of running shoes (he’s promised himself to get in shape). And then there’s Stella, the one constant in his life, who gives him sage advice, doesn’t judge him, and gives him unconditional love. However, Stella won’t accompany Paul into his favorite dive bar. "I'll roll on dead carp, I'll even eat cat turds, but that place grosses me out." Stella, you see, is Paul's aging Lab-shepherd mix, and she knows Paul better than he knows himself.
Why I wanted to read it: Since I've decided to dive into audio books this year, I have been religiously (seriously) going through Diane (Bibliophile by the Sea) and JoAnn's (Lakeside Musing) past posts about their favorite books they've listened to. Both of these wonderful ladies write such thoughtful and well constructed reviews and they have not steered me wrong. I picked this one from Diane's blog because I'm a huge dog lover and thought the whole concept of a dog being able to communicate with its owner was so very clever!
Source: Purchased from Audible.com
- I loved the narrator on this audio. He did such a great job of delivering Paul's voice and making him at times sound so sad, and then so very pathetic! I also thought he nailed Stella's character perfectly. She just came across to me as a dog with huge personality. I believed it when Stella spoke and what came out of her mouth had me laughing out loud on more than one occasion.
- At first glance this book could really sound dumb...I mean talking dog and all, right? That is so not the case. This is such a touching story and I cried on more than one occasion. It's really all about the human experience of love, loss, family, forgiveness, and moving on.
- I found myself rooting for Paul and I loved how he tried to reach out and have a relationship with his father even though it was via IM on the computer and his father was limited in answering yes or no to Paul's questions.
- Stella is an old soul. I loved her so much...her story made me cry.
This was one of the best audio experiences I've had to date and the story itself was wonderfully articulated by Josh Clark. I loved listening to this one daily and I honestly didn't want the story to come to an end. If you're looking for great audios, do yourself a HUGE favor and visit Diane and JoAnn's blogs. You will not be disappointed!
Bookish Thoughts #21
© 2012, Staci of Life in the Thumb. All Rights Reserved. If you reading this on a site other than, Life in the Thumb or Staci's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.
Oh Staci, I am so so happy you loved this as much as me. I cried too, and that doesn't happen often. Stella's story toward the end:(
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the shout out. I actually downloaded this one after loving it so much so I can listen again in the future.
Sounds like a good listen...made you cry! My gosh, that's tough on audio...must be an excellent narrator. I'm a sucker for talking dogs.
ReplyDeleteYou've turned in an audiobook-listening machine, Staci!! I'm going to bring my daughter home for spring break today. Three and a half hours of listening ahead of me, so I'll start The Homecoming of Samuel Lake (checked your review before I downloaded it). We'll be talking on the way home...
ReplyDeleteI need to read this! Sounds wonderful!! Thanks for the great review Staci!
ReplyDeleteI actually enjoy stories told from an animal's point of view. I haven't listened to Josh Clark's narration but I'm making a note of his name.
ReplyDeleteDoes the dog die? I'm wondering why you were crying! By the way I'm reading The Snow Child now and just love it!
ReplyDeleteWow, what an endorsement of the audio! I'll add it to the list :)
ReplyDeleteSounds like a good book! I love discovering books on Diane's blog too. Have you tried Book'd Out? I discovered her last fall and have become friends with her (she and I do joint reviews every month/two). I have discovered some great women's lit on her site.
ReplyDeletesounds like a good story to spend time with
ReplyDeleteBest audio experience? That's pretty high praise. It got my attention. I'm going to see if our library has it.
ReplyDeleteYou are really going for the audio this year :D Good for you!
ReplyDeleteI so agree with you on listening to Diane and JoAnn's recommendations! I will be putting this one on my ever growing audios to get to list.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds great Staci! I'll have to check and see if my library has the audio version.
ReplyDeleteI'm the odd woman out, but ". . . thought the whole concept of a dog being able to communicate with its owner was so very clever." is on the opposite end of the spectrum for me.
ReplyDeleteI looked at this one & thought nah it sounds corny. After reading your thoughts I think I'll have to reconsider ... a story that elicits tears is one worth reading!
ReplyDeleteGlad to see you're enjoying your foray into audio books. I can't listen to books because my mind wanders so much, LOL.
ReplyDeleteI'm not a fan of talking animals but communicating is okay. Joanne and Diane both have awesome reviews :)
ReplyDeleteWhoa! I love this title. Things from a dog's point of view would definitely be interesting.
ReplyDeleteI loved The Art of Racing in the Rain and The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, so I guess I better add this one to my soon-to-listen-to list, eh? It sounds like a winner! Thanks, Staci!
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