The Blessings of the Animals

June 28, 2010
Beginning with the end of Cami Anderson's marriage, Kittle (The Kindness of Strangers) wades through heartache and tragedy yet manages to find elegance and charm in her latest novel. Cami's distress is palpable as she deals with her husband's seemingly inexplicable decision to leave her and their teenage daughter, Gabriella. Juggling her veterinary practice, her now cynical daughter, and her own feelings takes up all of Cami's time but she soon realizes that she has no monopoly on struggle: her brother and his male partner lose their adopted daughter to the child's biological mother. Cami taps into her own experience with loss to help the couple, which leads her to take a more honest look at her marriage and the new life ahead of her. While Cami stumbles through post-divorce dating and raising Gabriella, her family of animals—horses, cats, dogs, and a goat—provide respite. Cami's reflections, in tandem with those of delightful friends, present a long-view of the nature of marriage and relationships.

July 1, 2010
Cam Anderson is a fixer. As a small-town veterinarian, she ministers to the usual parade of household pets, and as an animal-rescue volunteer she liberates abused horses, abandoned donkeys, stray goats. The one thing Cam cant salvage is her marriage. The morning her temperamental husband tells her hes leaving her, shes dumbfounded. The afternoon she catches him in the arms of a much younger woman, shes devastated. And the fact that everyone around her seems to be rejoicing in their own relationships isnt helping. Her best friend is engaged; her parents are celebrating their fiftieth anniversary; her gay brother and his partner are adopting. Though she turns to both an old friend and a new acquaintance to help her learn to trust her heart again, Cam ultimately discovers that her menagerie of maltreated critters are her most reliable instructors. With subtle yet shimmering insight, Kittle explores the resilience of human nature and the indelible role animals play in healing shattered emotions.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2010, American Library Association.)