Love Can Be: A Literary Collection About Our Animals- edited by Louisa McCune, Teresa Miller

“Love can be, and sure enough is, moving in all things, in all places, in all forms of life at the same snap of your finger.”—Woody Guthrie

Oklahoma native Woody Guthrie said it first and best. This new anthology of poems and prose, Love Can Be: A Literary Collection About Our Animals, is proof of what love can be, as thirty acclaimed authors join together to champion life in all its forms. This is their gift to the world, not just the artistry of their words, but their vision of an extended community that includes cats, birds, frogs, butterflies, bears, dogs, raccoons, horses—a full-out menagerie of being that enriches us all.

This broad-hearted vision comes with responsibility, and that responsibility speaks to the mission of the Kirkpatrick Foundation, publisher of the book. The Kirkpatrick Foundation will donate all net proceeds of sales of this volume to animal charities in Oklahoma as well as honoraria donated to the contributors’ selected animal charities.

Authors featured in the collection are Julia Alvarez, Blake Bailey, Rick Bass, P. C. Cast, Wayne Coyne, Kim Doner, Delia Ephron, Reyna Grande, Joy Harjo, Amy Hempel, Juan Felipe Herrera, S. E. Hinton, Brandon Hobson, Dean Koontz, Ursula K. Le Guin, Jill McCorkle, Teresa Miller, N. Scott Momaday, Joyce Carol Oates, Susan Orlean, Ron Padgett, Elise Paschen, Diane Rehm, Jewell Parker Rhodes, Wade Rouse, Alexander McCall Smith, Lalita Tademy, Clifton Taulbert, Michael Wallis, and Mary Logan Wolf.

Special contributions include:
* “The Cat,” one of the final original poems by the legendary Ursula K. Le Guin.
* A memorial tribute to Sudan, the last male white rhino, by former U.S. poet laureate Juan Felipe Herrera.
* An essay by noted novelist Alexander McCall Smith, who celebrates the whimsical link between baboons and opera.
* An essay on love, grief, and resilience by Peabody Award–winning journalist Diane Rehm.
* A classic, “Jubilate,” by Joyce Carol Oates.

My Thoughts Love Can Be: A Literary Collection About Our Animals

When I was offered a copy of this book review I of course, accepted.  Everyone knows about my love for animals. At first I thought it was a collection of stories about the contributing authors pets however, there are also stories about encounters with wild animals as well.  There are a great variety of animals written about which makes this book more exciting.  I have to say however, that I found a few of the stories just plain boring.  That said, I did enjoy most of the stories and there were quite a few that had me in tears.

‘Love Can Be’ is dedicated in memory of Joan Kirkpatrick, an Oklahoma animal advocate and daughter of the founders of the Kirkpatrick Foundation. She passed away in 2009 but the foundation is still going strong.  The processed for this book will go to animal rescue organizations in Oklahoma and other animal related organizations.  There are a lot of pets and wildlife in need so be sure to pick up a copy of this book and donate to your favorite animal welfare organizations, if you can.

4/5

I received the ebook for my honest review.