Have you ever wondered why Dachshunds have short legs and a long body, how the Cocker Spaniel got his name, whether a Fox Terrier could ever actually communicate with a horse, how the German Shepherd—once famed as a war dog—became the beloved friend of the blind; or why, in years past, the Beagle was so small he could fit into a glove? With a wealth of historical facts and true anecdotes Marguerite Henry answers these and dozens of other questions in this worthy companion to the ALBUM OF HORSES.

Skipping dry statistics and depending largely on the Wesley Dennis illustrations for descriptions, the author vividly examines twenty-five pure-bred dogs plus the mongrel. Her interest lies in the very hearts, the very spirits of the dogs themselves.

Almost no breed, except the mongrel, is an accident. Man combined with nature to give each dog his individuality; to shape him for a specific purpose on the earth. Underlying each sketch is the mysterious process of life itself.

From the book