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As Good as Gold by Patricia Furstenberg - Book Tour & Review + Giveaway

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As Good as Gold synopsis
As engaging as a tail wag
Celebrating the simple things in life as seen through the eyes of our old time favourite furry friends, “As Good as Gold” is a volume of poetry revealing the talent and humour we always knew our dogs possessed.
Dogs are full of questions, yet they are famed sellers of innocence especially when it comes to explaining their mishaps and often foolish effervescence through ponderings such as “Why IS a Cat Not Like a Dog”, “As Brown as Chocolate”, “Silver Stars and Puppy Tail” or, best yet, “Dog or Book?”
A book with an enormous heart for readers of all ages, it includes 35 poems and haiku accompanied by expressive portraits of our canine friends.


As Good as Gold Excerpt
 
 The puppy closed his eyes as he sniffed the wind,
The air was cool and fresh, scented by so many finds.
His tail wagged just as his front paws pounced,
His light body jumped, his head forward bobbed.
And thus,
Puppy went exploring.
No, puppy, look up!
The clouds!

The puppy barked once and away he sprang;
The grass was green, the air cooled down.
“A perfect summer’s day,” thought puppy with a bark,
“To explore the world!” He’ll begin with the back yard…
As puppy left the porch behind,
The sky turned grey
And dreary clouds
Covered the sun’s rays.

Puppy leapt ahead, jumped a stone or two,
“I am so brave, so big; I can cross the stream too.”
Yet the first drop had caught him as the thunder whipped.
“What a racket,” thought pup as he shook his head.
The first splatter caught his nose,
Then his back,
Then his tail.
And it showered on.

Puppy leaped for shelter by the old, oak tree;
The old, thick roots stood out: “It will be dry in there.”
He made himself small, hid his nose under his tail,
Tap-tap-tap; phut-phut-phut, sang outside the gale
In a rhythm of three-three,
Then four-four-four and…
Snore.

The rain kept on singing the old lullaby,
And as the day went cold, the stream began to rise.
The earth was hot with summer; the rain came cold and fast.
The puppy slept and snored, stirring with the blast.
And when the curtain rain went further, it took the song away.
The forest quietened;
The puppy opened one eye.
“So,
What now?”

The birds were chirping overhead, about a ray of sunshine
That pierced the clouds and caused the drops
To sparkle a thousand rainbows.
And puppy blinked and sneezed just once.
“What’s this?
My tummy’s rumbling!
I guess it’s snack time!
What a coincidence!”

From his dry shelter puppy jumped amidst the mulch and mud bath;
His fur, wet after just two steps; his paws slick on the mud path.
The grass is damp, the puppy small and look, his bottom slips
His paws try hard to catch dry land; something’s amiss!
The stream is gone and in its place
A river thunders past him.
And all he can
Is whimper.

And puppy cries, his feet are stuck,
He cannot cross this river;
He’s cold and hungry and alone.
“I’ll help you,” speaks a small snail.
“I’ll call your mom. Just wait a bit. I’m going.”
And puppy whimpers and waits for snail… or for the river to diminish.

“There you are pup! All full of mud?
What were you thinking?”
And pup licks mom’s hand, his tail wags, muddy drops splashing.
“Just talking to snail-friend,
About the weather… and the rain.
We surely needed some…”

♦♦♦

My Review
As Good as Gold is an adorable collection of poems and haikus about man's best friend. Each poem tells a short little story about a day in the life of a dog. Each poem also includes a picture to accompany it. 

From dogs discovering cats, to dogs out in the rain (see excerpt), to dogs playing and doing their own doggy thing. Each poem will delight readers and give them a little bit of insight into what their precocious doggies might think about when they wake up every day. 

I found this collection to be a quick, fun read. I'm more of a cat person myself, but I do love dogs, and each poem captured a special moment in a dog's life, no matter how silly or seemingly mundane it might seem to us humans.

I'd recommend As Good as Gold to fans of poetry and books about dogs in general. It's a great read for people of all ages.

Four stars from me!


Amazon and BOOK links:

AUTHOR Bio:
Patricia Furstenberg came to writing through reading. She always carries a notebook and a pen, although at times she jots down her ideas on the back of till slips or types them on her phone.
Patricia enjoys writing for children because she can take abstract, grown-up concepts and package them in humorous, child-friendly ideas while adding sensitivity and lots of love. What fuels her is an exhilarating need to write and… coffee: “How many cups have had this morning?” “None.” “Plus?” “Five cups.”
Between her books you can find the beloved Joyful Trouble, The Cheetah and the Dog, Puppy, 12 Months of Rhymes and Smiles.
She is a Huffington Post contributor and pens the Sunday Column for MyPuppyclub.net as well as dabbing in freelancing. After completing her Medical Degree in Romania she moved to South Africa where she now lives with her husband, children and their dogs.
 
AUTHOR links:
Pat’s books on Amazon UK / Amazon US / Amazon Canada

 GIVEAWAY Details:
During each day of this exciting blog tour, a different book by the author of As Good as Gold will be available for FREE, in eBook format, on Amazon: Amazon UK / Amazon US / Amazon Canada

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2 Comments

  1. Dear Jasmine,
    Thank you for this wonderful review I am so pleased that you enjoyed As Good As Gold :) So exciting being featured on your lovely blog.
    It has been a real pleasure having you part of my blog tour and I do hope that we will work together again!

    I placed a link to your review from the blog tour's official page here: http://alluringcreations.co.za/wp/as-good-as-gold-book-blog-tour/

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You're very welcome! I'm always happy to work with you and your books. :) Thanks so much!

      Delete

Please try not to spam posts with the same comments over and over again. Authors like seeing thoughtful comments about their books, not the same old, "I like the cover" or "sounds good" comments. While that is nice, putting some real thought and effort in is appreciated. Thank you.