The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances

By: Ellen Cooney

Narrated by: Susie Berneis

Evie is stuck at The Inn, managed by the stern and mysterious Mrs. Auberchon, although she's supposed to join a training program at The Sanctuary. That's what she signed up for - never mind that she lied and doesn't know the first thing about animals. Once up on the mountain with staffers, volunteers, and her dog students, Evie takes notes on the new things she’s learning. Alpha. Forgiveness. Play. Rehabilitation. Like the racing greyhound who refuses to move, the golden retriever who returns every time he's adopted, and the rottweiler who's a hopeless candidate for search-and-rescue, Evie came from a troubled past. She writes: Rescue. Best. Verb. Ever. As she creates her own training manual, she may even write an entry on herself.

©2014 Ellen Cooney (P)2014 Dreamscape Media, LLC

Critic reviews

"The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances is both a joyful romp and a wise, engaging meditation on dogs, love, and recovery from pain. Come. Sit. Read!" - Lily King, author of The Pleasing Hour and Father of the Rain

"A young woman who knows she's lost, and an older woman who doesn't think she is, meet a slew of castaway dogs at a snowy, mountaintop sanctuary, and discover what they didn’t even know they were looking for. A charming novel about overcoming the past and finding meaning and purpose in the present." - Susan Richards, author of Chosen by a Horse

“The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances is a jubilant, wise celebration of love, reciprocal between human and canine, in ways profound, moving, and soul saving. Readers will long remember the central humans in this tale - Evie, Mrs. Auberchon, and Giant George - along with the exquisitely drawn cast of rescued dogs who, in their own delightful, mysterious, and silent ways, heal their rescuers wounds. Ellen Cooney has written a funny, joyous, and heartrending book that insists intelligence and kindness must win out over ignorance and cruelty. Exploring the human and canine hearts with equal doses of wisdom and wit, Mountaintop is surely a book to be read and reread preferably with your dog nestled by your side.” - Connie May Fowler, author of Remembering Blue

Missing an ending

What did you like best about The Mountaintop School for Dogs and Other Second Chances? What did you like least?

I did like some of the dog training sessions and typical dog behavior. The author developed the dog characters more than the human characters. I didn't like the parts where Evie was typing on her computer and regurgitating facts. It wasn't needed.

What was most disappointing about Ellen Cooney’s story?

I was very disappointed in the story's ending or lack there of. It ended so abruptly, there was no conclusion to the plot. I kept waiting for the plot to develop and then it ended.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

The narration was clear and easy to follow, but the tone was a bit whiny.

Oh, for those who love dogs!

All her life Evie has been searching for a place where she can belong, a place where she can help build lives, and she finds it at the Mountaintop Sanctuary for Dogs. Along with other lost souls, both canine and human, she finds the transforming power of love and learns to use that power as well as benefit from what comes her way. A delightful read, well performed.

Underwhelming

There really isn't a plot and there certainly isn't an ending that satisfies. There are bits of wisdom, but overall, this is a disappointment. Use your book credits for something else. :(