Patrick McDonnell just might be an animal shelter's best friend. For the last decade, twice a year, he has put "shelter stories" front and center in his nationally syndicated comic strip, MUTTS Readers of more than 700 newspapers around the country have laughed—and probably teared up a time or two—at the stories of loss and love reflected in his strip.
Now, with the release of his hard cover book, "Shelter Stories: Love. Guaranteed.", readers can celebrate stories about animal shelter pets—and the caring people who work at animal shelters—year-round.
The book contains reprints of more than 100 of McDonnell's Shelter Stories strips, alongside color photos of 70 adopted dogs, cats, bunnies and other pets who were selected from thousands of entries submitted by grateful adopters.
One particularly lovely black cat, Misty, lives with Michael and Grace Markarian of The HSUS. All the photos are beautiful, especially in the emotions they reflect. They aren't shot by professional photographers, and McDonnell thinks that's better.
"You realize that dog or cat or hamster [in each photo] is looking at the person they love," he says. "I think that really shows."
After creating Shelter Stories strips for 10 years, it's obvious that McDonnell has become even more committed to the vital work done by animal shelters. In his introduction to the book, McDonnell says his stories are "about the innocent animals who patiently wait for a home, the dedicated workers who devote such care to them, and the kindhearted people who adopt them.
They are stories of past cruelty, survival, sacrifice, hope, salvation—and joy."
In the back of the book, McDonnell has included an Adoption Guide, with information from The HSUS on everything from how to choose a pet to what to expect from the adoption process.
"Hopefully, there will be people who get the book who will be inspired to adopt ... but don't know how. I wanted to let them know more about the process."
HSUS President and CEO Wayne Pacelle notes in his foreward to the book, "As one of America's most successful cartoonists, Patrick could easily have closed himself off from the problems of the world—content to draw cartoon animals without ever worrying about the real ones. But he's not that kind of artist, or that kind of person."
In addition to being an award-winning cartoonist, Patrick McDonnell is a "New York Times" best-selling author, and Genesis Award recipient. He has also served on the HSUS Board of Directors since 2000.
You can buy "Shelter Stories" online and wherever books are sold.
