This memoir is truly enjoyable for anyone who loves his or her dog. It was such a comfort to me. We had a couple of older dogs, and then we got a little puppy. That puppy (Joe) is now almost 13 years old.

I enjoyed this book very much. Dogs were everything to the author as she grew up, and this memoir tells us about her life throughout the years, through the dogs that became part of her and her families lives.
Fig, is the most recent dog that she has owned and the same breed as one that had been very special to her, a Vizslas. Having this new puppy has been quite a trial as there is a lot of training to do, before she will become the perfect authors dog, who will sit by her side as she writes.
The bonus for her has been needing to break up her routine for dog walks, as they both loved to be in nature, and it was a good way to recharge before writing.
The author also gives us a look into other authors and there dogs, with there own set of challenges.
I have read one of the authors novels and have 2 more waiting to be read, so I am looking forward to that.
I would like to thank NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for a copy of this book.

A definite win, win of a book. I love books about dogs and enjoy this author. Telling the story of her writing life, juxtaposed with the dogs she has owned and the new puppy she bought home. In her late fifties she decides to aquire a new puppy, she names Fig. Her preferred breed are Vizslas, a breed of which I had ever heard, but which, I of course, searched on Google. Beautiful animals.

Fig is a challenge in the beginning and she tells of her beginning struggles with this very active puppy. She thinks back to her last dog, Charlotte, and the easy comfort, relationship they had. Of course, Fig progresses and they bond. She uses stages of a dog's life with the stages of writing a novel. She also tells of other famous authors and their relationships with dogs they owned. Photographs included. Helen finds, in her writing life, that a dog is a necessity, for breaks, long walks and of course companionship.

A wonderful book if one loves dogs. Very clever too, I feel, the way this was written. Loved following Figs growth as her personality develops.

A lovely memoir Helen Humphreysbribg us into her world her love for her the wonderful dogs she shared her life with.Fig her latest pup is full of life energy and she adores him as she did her past pets.She also shares her love of writing her system of writing her days as she writes and plays with her pup her companion.As a dog lover I enjoyed meeting her pups .#netgalley #fsg

"Into my writer's isolation will come a dog, to sit beside my chair or to lie on the couch while I work, to force me outside for a walk...although still lonely, this writer will have a companion."
-Helen Humphreys

Helen shares a blueprint for her writing process, a method enhanced by the presence of a canine companion. "Writing all day was hard, although not as hard as the loneliness that attended it." "At the beginning of my writing, and my life journey, there was a dog."

When Helen's beloved Vizsla, "Charlotte" crossed the Rainbow Bridge, she purchased a new puppy she named "Fig". Helen kept a journal of the ups and downs of training after having had "Charlotte", the dog of a lifetime. Walking with "Fig" through a big field that months before she walked with "Charlotte", "...it wasn't so much a memory as an intersection-the two events came together in the same place and touched one another...".

Helen's words echoed my experience as a dog owner. My fourteen year old Springer Spaniel, "Whiz", was playfully anointed with the nickname "Franklin". What followed was the naming of our newbie, a rescue puppy, "Franklin", to channel our beloved dog. The two "Franklin's" were best buds, the puppy ever so gentle with her frail companion and namesake.

Helen describes a method of writing that works well for her...a structured style. "I read Virginia Woolf...I followed Woolf's example of how to live a writing day...Life for Woolf was a morning of writing and an afternoon of walking with a dog, a routine she maintained for most of her life." According to Helen, "Structure is a novel, and in life, is the perfect balance of order and chaos...the structure of a day could be...four dog walks...creative freedom...in this mix of the expected and the unexpected make for the best writing."

"And a Dog Called Fig: Solitude, Connection, the Writing Life" by Helen Humphreys is enhanced by black and white photos of dogs that complemented the lives of some famous authors. Emily Bronte's dog "Keeper", accompanied her on walks across "the bleak Yorkshire moors." Gertrude Stein and Alice B. Toklas has three white standard poodles in succession, each one called "Basket". Helen Humphrey's new puppy, "Fig", entered into a continuum of twenty-two years of Vizsla ownership for Helen. As "Fig" matured, would he develop any quirky behaviors? "There is often incongruity in character...sometimes...the most interesting part of someone...an anomaly...a wild card." Dogs live in the moment, perhaps a life lesson to be learned by us humans! A highly recommended read for writers and dog lovers.

Thank you Farrar, Straus and Giroux and Net Galley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Certainly a cozy memoir and one animal/dog lovers will be sure to enjoy. For me, it fell a little short by its meanderings and sometimes getting too bogged down in detail.

A lovely memoir on writing and the author's many dogs, including her beloved Fig seen on the cover. I really connected with Helen as she describes the impact her dogs have had on her life, and on an assortment of writers whose dogs meant much to them, including Emily Brontë, Agatha Christie, and Maurice Sendak. A delightful read for dog lovers, writers, and those who seek a comforting book on an inclement day. Out now.

Thanks to the author, Farrar, Straus and Giroux, and NetGalley for the ARC; opinions are mine.

#andadogcalledfig #helenhumphreys #FarrarStrausGiroux #netgalley

The writing life is often a solitary endeavor. Unless you happen to enjoy years with beautiful, intelligent, stubborn vislas. The story of Fig from puppyhood into maturity is a great foil to the life and challenges of writing - routine, patience, determination all are needed. As a dog owner for many years I can relate to the difficulties and joy of having a loving companion. Dogs enhance any life and career, as well as provide needed laughs when you least expect it.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

After losing her last dog Charlotte suddenly (Charlotte being that one “perfect dog” the author has known in a lifetime of good dogs), Helen Humphreys decided to get another vizsla puppy and record her experience. The result, And a Dog Called Fig, serves as a “highlights-reel” type of memoir for Humphreys (she gives an overview of her upbringing and adult life, touches briefly on each of the books she has written, and describes what dogs she knew along the way; never getting too personal), and along with a day-by-day account of her and the puppy Fig getting to know one another and live together over the first couple of months, Humphreys shares brief stories of other famous authors and their canine companions, drawing some insightful conclusions about how having a dog complements the writer’s life. This wasn’t a deep or complicated read, I don’t know if I really learned anything earth-shattering or essential, but it was a pleasurable experience — combining two of my favourite interests, dogs and bookish things — and three stars shouldn’t be taken to mean that I didn’t like this very, very much.

Author Helen Humphreys has crafted a warm-hearted book about the dogs in her sixty-year life and how they have affected her writing. She has lived with vizslas for over 22 years and has found that though writing can be lonely, just getting out to walk with the dog clears her mind and structures her writing day. Ms. Humphreys also tells of other authors and their dogs and focuses on her most recent puppy, called Fig. Thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a delight. It has all the warm coziness of curling up in front of a warm fire, book in hand, hot beverage handy, and a warm dog on your lap. It is, as the book blurb says, "A love song to the dogs who come into our lives, and all that they bring --sorrow, mayhem, meditation, joy -- this is a book about the beauty of a steadfast canine friend and the restorative powers of nature. Just as every work of art is different, every dog is different -- with distinctive needs and lessons to offer. If we let them guide us, they, like art, will show us many worlds we would otherwise miss."

"And a Dog Called Fig" should be on every dog lover's shelf and be read and read again and again. While Humphreys writes of her own writing journey and that of other writers, it's the story of her connection to her dogs that supplies the connection. We learn from them just as they learn from us. In return, they offer unconditional love, even if they do offer up the occasional questioning look or side-eye. Bottom line, if you love dogs, you need the book.

When I laughed aloud of her recounting of the story of Thomas Hardy's dog Wessex, who seemed to have the run of his home, walking along the tabletop and helping itself to whatever took its fancy at dinner parties, my own dog gave me a quizzical look. I was reminded of that later in the book when I encountered Humphrey's mention of one of her own dog's looks. The look of "What are you doing? I didn't say you could do that." Yes, Humphreys knows dogs and says elsewhere that dogs "represent balance, serenity and is a sound creature in a crazed world." How true that is. This book is a keeper.

Thanks so much #NetGalley and #FarrarStrausAndGiroux for giving me the chance to read this wonderful book. I will definitely be on the look out for #HelenHumphreys' other work.

So much of AND A DOG CALLED FIG encompasses walks Helen Humphreys takes with her new puppy, Fig, and the beloved dogs of her past--and one of the joys of this memoir is the reader's sense of having accompanied them, too--and how the walks enriched not only Humphreys' life, but the reader's too. An extra treat is the insight into other authors and their dogs past--don't miss the photos. A rich, contemplative, intelligent read which will not only make you look at your own dog with new insight--but will send you to the shelves to read Humphreys' previous works. Highly recommended.

As the name suggests, this book is about the author's adventures, accidents and memories with her dog, Fig. It also includes her experiences with her adult dogs and short stories of various famous authors and their dogs.
Reading this felt like having a conversation with the author.

The author keeps it as real as possible. She gets a puppy at 60. She wanted an adult dog all the while but fate had other plans. Fig was naughty and full of energy, like a pupper should be. She always grew up with dogs around. Each of them was special for her and fresh in her memory. She narrates how life was with them and how it is at present, with little Fig.

Numerous writer like Agatha Christie, Virginia Woolf have had dogs. So the author narrates what they have said about dogs and their role in a writer's journey. She offers great insights of literature.

Human-dog relationship is a topic to be explored deeply. The author takes us through the same from different perspectives.

The author talks a lot about her writing journey too. The book is voluminous so pick it when you are in the mood for a long story. People with dogs, especially those who raised multiple dogs of various breeds or age groups will relate to the book. Dog lovers will have a great time throughout.
Language is simple and pace is slow.
I got an advance review copy and I'm posting the review voluntarily.

Thank you to NetGalley and Farrar, Straus and Giroux for my digital copy of And a Dog Called Fig. I was drawn to it because it's a personal tale about dogs and writing. The author alternates between a diary of her experience with her new puppy and stories about her life, her dogs, and famous authors' relationships with their dogs. Just some of the authors included were Virginia Woolf, Maurice Sendak, Emily Bronte, Margaret Wise Brown (who had beagles!), Agatha Christie, and Alice Walker. The book included photos not only of the author's dogs, but also of some of the historical dogs. Somehow seeing these old photos of authors with their dogs made them more real.

If you're a dog owner, you'll probably relate to a lot of what Helen Humphreys goes through with her dogs over the years- when your beloved dog passes away, you bring a new dog into your home, and they feel like a stranger; how we learn from dogs; how they force us to take breaks when we're working from home; how we love them unconditionally, and they love us right back.

I like this quote about the joy we get from our relationship with dogs. "It is such a simple thing, walking with or after the dog, watching them take in all the smells and sights of the day. I'm not sure why it conjures up such happiness in me. But like all the happy times I can remember in my life, it is about a sense of being notched fully into the present moment, with no thought or desire outside of that."

I haven't read anything by Helen Humphreys before now, but this book has made me want to. And a Dog Called Fig will be published on March 8, 2022. I recommend it!