I don’t know what to make of The Mountaintop School for Dogs by Ellen Cooney. I read a good review somewhere and since I like dogs, I thought what the heck. I might as well try it. Hmmm!
Evie is 24 and has had an unsettling life. She’s just left some kind of “program”. Against everyone’s better judgment, she applies to the Sanctuary to become a dog trainer…and gets accepted…despite leaving half the application questions unanswered. The Sanctuary is on some remote mountain and they rescue dogs. (One might say they rescue people as well.)
Her first stop is the inn at the bottom of the mountain run by Mrs. Auberchon, a 60-70 year old who’s been running the inn for years. She vascillates between relishing her solitude on the premise that recruits always leave a mess (there weren’t any recruits prior to Evie arriving) and relishing company.
It seems like Evie is not really going to receive much in the way of training. She’ll merely have to experiment to learn how to train dogs.
While learning how Evie comes to terms with her life, one also learns of the horrendous cruelty some people perpetrate against dogs: dog fights, choke collars, beatings. Your heart will go out to our four footed friends who typically give unconditional love. Can Evie make them forget about their past. Can they make her forget about her past?
Evie and Mrs. Auberchon are memorable characters. Boomer, an old golden retriever, took my heart. But are they enough to carry the book? I’m just not sure.
Two Heads Together 