Horizon Information Portal

e-branch

Home

My Account/Renew Loans

Find Magazine Articles & more

Item Information

		Copy / Holding Information
		Publisher Weekly Review
		More Content


	More by this author
		Humphreys, Helen, 1961-

	Subjects
		Humphreys, Helen, 1961-
		Women authors, Canadian -- 20th century -- Biography.
		Authors, Canadian -- 20th century -- Biography.
		Dog owners -- Canada -- Biography.
		Women dog owners -- Biography.
		Dogs.
		Human-animal relationships.
		Authorship -- Psychological aspects.

	Browse Catalog
		by author:
		Humphreys, Helen, 1961-

		by title:
		And a dog called Fig...

		by call number:
		819.354 H927a

	Search the Web
		Humphreys, Helen, 1961-
		Humphreys, Helen, 1961-
		Women authors, Canadian -- 20th century -- Biography.
		Authors, Canadian -- 20th century -- Biography.
		Dog owners -- Canada -- Biography.
		Women dog owners -- Biography.
		Dogs.
		Human-animal relationships.
		Authorship -- Psychological aspects.


	MARC Display

And a dog called Fig : solitude, connection, the writing life / Helen Humphreys.

by Humphreys, Helen, 1961-

View full image

HarperCollinsPublishersLtd, 2022.

Humphreys, Helen, 1961-

Women authors, Canadian -- 20th century -- Biography.

Authors, Canadian -- 20th century -- Biography.

Dog owners -- Canada -- Biography.

Women dog owners -- Biography.

Human-animal relationships.

Authorship -- Psychological aspects.

9781443463416 (hc)

253 p. : ill. ; 20 cm.

Includes bibliographical references.

"A writer's solitude is a sacred space, one to be guarded and kept apart from the chaos of the world. This isolation allows for uninhibited wandering, uninterrupted meditation and the nurturing of sparks of inspiration into fires of creation. But in the artist’s quiet there is also loneliness, self-doubt, the possibility of collapsing too far inward. What a writer needs is a familiar, a creature perfectly suited to accompany them on this coveted, difficult journey. They need a companion with emotional intelligence, innate curiosity, passion and energy and an enthusiasm for the world beyond, but also the capacity to sleep contentedly for many hours. What an artist needs, Helen Humphreys would say, is a dog. And a Dog Called Fig is a memoir of the writing life told through the dogs Humphreys has lived with and loved over a lifetime, culminating with the recent arrival and settling in of Fig, a Vizsla puppy. Interspersed are stories of other writers and their irreplaceable companions: Virginia Woolf and Grizzle, Gertrude Stein and Basket, Thomas Hardy and Wessex -- the dog who walked the dining table at dinner parties, taking whatever he liked -- and many more. It’s a book about companionship and loss and creativity that is filled with the beauty of a steadfast canine friend and the restorative powers of nature. It is also a book about craft, divided into sections that echo the working parts of a novel -- Beginnings, Character, Pacing, Setting, Structure, Process, Endings. Just as every work of art is different, every dog is different -- with distinctive needs and lessons to offer. And if we let them guide us, they, like art, will show us many worlds we would otherwise miss."--Publisher.

Horizon Information Portal 3.24_8902M

© 2001-2013 SirsiDynix All rights reserved.

Horizon Information Portal