The Second-Smartest Dog That Ever Lived


Fiction - Animals
467 Pages
Reviewed on 06/30/2024
Buy on Amazon

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    Book Review

Reviewed by Jessica Barbosa for Readers' Favorite

The Second-Smartest Dog by Will Pass starts when a nameless, big-eared dog is left to fight for his life after being thrown out of a moving car. An angel, figuratively speaking, in khakis saved him and brought him to the vet to be treated. After surgery, the dog’s guardian angel, Mary, brought him home to care for him. During his stay, she decided to name him Leo. Living with Mary was great but also frustrating. Humans were strange and Leo was weird too but somehow he could not communicate with humans like he could with other animals. The longer he spent with Mary the more he realized he thought more like a human than an animal. To find answers to his many questions, the once-nameless dog embarks on a quest that would lead him to an answer he never expected.

The Second-Smartest Dog that Ever Lived caught my interest with its witty narration from the point of view of a very peculiar dog named Leo, who then decided to rename himself Rousseau. Immersed in a dog’s perspective, it was intriguing to read how Rousseau went from a confused, frightened nameless dog to a highly intelligent dog whose thoughts became more humanlike and complex with each passing day. The story was fast-paced and exciting to follow. Will Pass’s writing pulled me in and allowed me to experience the mindset of a dog who had been through quite an ordeal but continued to push against the often confusing world around him. Interactions between Rousseau and the world at large provided me with great entertainment and curiosity. Aside from Rousseau’s fascinating adventures to freedom and the truth and maybe a little revenge, I was also taken along a fascinating journey through his thoughts and emotions which were a mix of human and dog. Such an engrossing storyline made me look forward to more from Will Pass. Great work!