"Everybody died, so I got a dog." by Emily Dean

This book has been waiting on my shelf to be read for so long. I’d been a fan of Emily Dean’s podcast, Walking the Dog, in which she walks dogs with famous faces, for some time, so when I saw this in Waterstones, I had to pick it up.

The title and first few pages of this book explicitly tell you the overarching story of Emily’s life; but I think I was expecting there to be more of the consequence than the story of her family, and the struggles they go through.

This book was incredibly moving, the author writes so openly and honestly that at many points throughout this book, I had to find the tissue box - we’re talking full-on sobbing. And yet, the author is incredibly self-aware and uses this to talk you through her journey of recovery and hope, and how she eventually makes her own dog-family.

I completely recommend this book to those who love dogs, and those who don’t, to those who have listed to her podcast, and to those who have yet to enjoy it. This personal autobiography surrounding family and grief is one that all of us will relate to in one way or another.