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Rating: 
Summary: This is the BEST book!
Review: I found this book probably about 4 or 5 years ago, and since then I've read it about 20 times. So That Others May Live is really one of those hard to put down books. It captures the tragedy, heroism, compassion, and often humor of what Caroline Hebard and her dogs have done and still continue to do. All in all... it is one of the best books I've ever read, and I highly recommend it to anyone who loves dogs, or has any interest in Search and Rescue work.
Rating: 
Summary: Puff piece is really self-indulgent autobiography
Review: I respect the dedication of Ms. Hebard, so much I gave the book an extra star for her work. The book is a stinker--as literature it gets a star and a half. Supposedly Ms. Hebard is a contributor but there is little evidence the author did his homework and spoke to anyone else. The result is a book that is self-serving and at times boring. A golden opportunity to educate more thoroughly was missed. I am not giving the book a poor review because it is not a technical manual. I think the book would have been more interesting if it was spiced with more technical information. For instance, at one point, describing the other dogs on a mission, Ms. Hebard talks about the sex, breed and whether the other dogs were fixed. She never explains why this is important. One could conjecture that it is a brag on her part about her and her intact dog because an intact male can be more difficult to handle. If that is the case the brag is somewhat hollow because on all of her successful dogs much of the important formative training was done by others. This book also drags a bit. I found the earthquake stories in Armenia to be similar enough to the Latin American ones that it was redundant. The Armenia chapter merely adds that the amazing polyglot speaks a smattering of Russian as well. A summary of this book would be as follows: insecure girl grows up, buys expensive trained dogs, goes to disasters and uses dogs and super-natural language ability to save lives to overcome previous insecurity--all in the face of opposition from idiots.
Rating: 
Summary: Adrenaline Junky
Review: No, it will not win a Pulitzer Prize, but if you like dogs it will both make you laugh and make you cry. I enjoyed it in spite of its flaws.
This book is a very personal account of one woman and her dogs-it is an autobiography that emphasizes only one aspect of her life (albeit the most important). All of the other characters that appear are mere shadows; her husband and children, neighbors and co-workers, enemies and allies all drift insubstantially in and out of the story. The anecdotes stress the working partnership that can be formed between a person and a dog.
Hebard's co-author writes Sunday supplement human-interest features and it shows-the style is easy to read but lacks depth. I have a hard time believing that Mrs. Hebard is as shallow as the book makes her seem.
Her dogs are not portrayed as heroes-to do so would be to anthropomorphize them. They are animals playing the game that they have been trained to play-a game that makes them feel good much more often than it makes them feel bad. Unfortunately, Caroline Hebard comes across the same way-a self-confessed adrenaline junky.
Rating:
Summary: This is the BEST book!
Review: No, it will not win a Pulitzer Prize, but if you like dogs it will make you laugh and make you cry. Hebard's co-author specializes in Sunday supplement work and it shows. The writing is typical of a human-interest newspaper feature-this is not a criticism, merely an observation.
This biography is not intended as a balanced history of the rescue dog movement in America-it is a very personal document about Hebard and her animals. All others, including her husband, neighbors, co-workers, and children, are shadowy background figures.
Read the book for pleasure, escape, or even inspiration. The dogs in the book are not heroes-to call them that would be anthropomorphizing them. They are simply playing the game they have been trained to play, a game that makes them feel good much more often than it makes them feel bad. The same could be said for Caroline Hebard-a self-confessed adrenaline junky.
Rating:
Summary: A Very Personal History of an Adrenaline Junky
Review: No, it will not win a Pulitzer Prize, but if you like dogs it will make you laugh and make you cry. Hebard's co-author specializes in Sunday supplement work and it shows. The writing is typical of a human-interest newspaper feature-this is not a criticism, merely an observation.
This biography is not intended as a balanced history of the rescue dog movement in America-it is a very personal document about Hebard and her animals. All others, including her husband, neighbors, co-workers, and children, are shadowy background figures.
Read the book for pleasure, escape, or even inspiration. The dogs in the book are not heroes-to call them that would be anthropomorphizing them. They are simply playing the game they have been trained to play, a game that makes them feel good much more often than it makes them feel bad. The same could be said for Caroline Hebard-a self-confessed adrenaline junky.
Rating:
Summary: Inspired me
Review: This book inspired me to become a dog trainer. I carefully watch for the S&R dogs now at disaster sites and think of this book. I can now empathize with the joys and hardship of this work and hope to be a contributing part of this someday. Excellent book.
Rating:
Summary: A lovely animal story
Review: What a great story of wonderful animals and a large hearted women. She and her dogs surely gave the world a great view of what America's best looks like. How many families across the world and within our country have been greatly assisted by her and the groups she was with. This is not only a good story it is a saga of heart felt charity by some of the most wonderful people we have to offer. I am so very proud to know we are of the same clan, Americans. If you love your dogs don't miss this book.
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