The Book of the Dog

Abstract

TO begin with, one must commend the majestic appearance of this in every sense weighty volume —a worthy companion to the same combination‘s production, "The Book of the Horse". It is stimulating to handle a thing of substance and quality in these attenuated days. At two guineas it is good value, and here, in material content, is what you get for it : 1,057 quarto pages of good paper, and honest-sized type ; 336 illustrations, including twenty-four excellently produced coloured plates; full description and illustration of 119 breeds of dogs ; forty-one articles covering practically every aspect of the dog and man‘s relations with it-at all events I cannot think of any more, except possibly circus dogs, an omission I for one can endure without complaint ; all this done by sixty-two contributors, who in this review must mostly remain anonymous, though they are all experts in their own subject. The quantity of material is impressive ; so also is the quality, chiefly because, although a high literary standard was obviously not the target of the planner, yet, notwithstanding the total length of the book, the individual articles are generally concise, factual and clear. There is, too, a general absence of sentimentality- though lots of affection-which is most refreshing.

The Book of the Dog

Edited by Brian Vesey-Fitzgerald. Pp. xviii + 1039 + 24 plates. (London: Ivor Nicholson and Watson, Ltd., 1948.) 42s. net.