Review: The Pug List by Alison Hodgson

The Pug List by Alison Hodgson

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

“What if a wheezing, sneezing, allegedly house-trained, ticking time bomb of an orphan pug is the key to helping a family feel at home again, after an arsonist set their house—and life—on fire? If you asked me, I would have said it’s a bad idea; we can do better. Unfortunately no one asked me, and The Pug List is my family’s story.”

In the fire’s aftermath of insurance battles royal, rebuilding plans, parenting in the face of life’s hard questions and a scorching case of post-traumatic stress, now is absolutely the worst possible time to adopt a dog. But to Alison’s seven-year-old daughter, Eden, it’s the perfect time—and The Relentless Campaign begins.

Until one day Alison peeks inside Eden’s diary—dubbed “The Pug List”—and realizes in one fell swoop that her girl’s heart is on the line, and resistance is futile (“The pugs make me happy FOREVER.”).

Enter “Outrageous” Oliver, and the hilarity, healing, and irresistible hope that follows.

I loved this book!  It was so articulate and heartfelt.  Having been through the experience of a tree falling on my house during a storm, causing extensive damage and living in a hotel for 6 months while repairs were being made, I can somewhat empathize with this author.  And I say somewhat, because we didn't lose near as much as you do to a house burning down.

This author is very transparent in how she felt and what her and her family goes through after the fire.  She's honest about her faith and shares, with humor, the ups and downs they go through and the real life post-traumatic stress they deal with.   More than once, she brought tears to my eyes describing her struggle, as the mother, to help her kids deal with the aftermath and to help them each, in their own way, to feel safe again.

This book is not about a Pug.  What it is about is a real life family who experiences a real life trauma and how after everything they've gone through, God directs them to a little Pug who brings healing to a little girls heart and joy and hope to the rest of the family.

*Thanks to BookLook Bloggers for a complimentary copy of this book for review purposes. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated are my own.*

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Alison Hodgson is a writer, speaker and humorist whose life experiences have made her an involuntary expert on the etiquette of perilous times. She is a Moth StorySLAM champion and a contributor to the design website Houzz.com. Her writing has been featured on Forbes.com, Christianity Today’s Her.meneutics blog and Religion News Service. She is a co-founder of Breathe Christian Writers Conference and a member of Ink: A Creative Collective. Alison lives outside Grand Rapids, Michigan with her husband, their three children and two good dogs.  
Find out more about Alison on her website, Facebook and Twitter.
Find out more about Oliver on his Facebook page - The Real Pug Oliver and on Instagram! :)