Gorgeously Written Life-Affirming Memoir

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Stories written by life are as charming as they are heartbreaking. The sweetness in all its reinvigorating guises is always slightly spoiled by a dollop of bitterness. But, as Kate MacDougall said in her furry debut, "you either get where you want to go or you don't, and the middle bit is just life."

London's No.1 Dog-Walking Agency, a 2021 debut from Kate MacDougall, is a warm account of the trials and tribulations of her life as a dog walker, a budding businesswoman, a wife, a mum, a human. It's a beautifully written account of a person on a journey of discovery.

And that discovery is indeed the motif that rolls throughout the story precisely as it does in our lives. Things happen. Things change and transform. We grow as professionals, as human beings. We discover new, rediscover the old, and we are in a constant state of flux. MacDougall captures it perfectly through the poignant stories about dogs she walked throughout her career.

Despite the setting, dogs are not as important as we are lead to believe. It's a story of humanity and what it is. As wonderful as they are, dogs in this story are a background to the perceptive look Kate MacDougall takes at the lives of others. Every story of a dog is a story of their owner intertwined with MacDougall's own struggles. It's a brave and honest account that a transition into new life is rarely comfortable and never goes as smoothly as we'd like.

The style of the book is captivating. MacDougall has a way with words and knows how to punch straight in the feels without saying much. She seamlessly combines chattiness over a cuppa with well-worded articulacy and eloquence. The language is lyrical and tinted with nostalgia whilst pleasantly readable. It's indeed a pleasurable read I would recommend wholeheartedly.