New Audio Book -- A Dog Named Leaf: The Hero from Heaven Who Saved My Life
UNABRIDGED
by Allen Anderson , Linda Anderson
Narrated by Bob Malos

     A big-hearted and undeniably appealing memoir about a man and his dog. After authoring fourteen successful books that tell other people's stories about the human-animal bond, Allen Anderson is ready to tell his own story - a remarkable journey with a highly intuitive but troubled, rescued cocker spaniel who literally saved Allen's life.

     Allen, a former police officer who became with his wife Linda, an award-winning animal book author, received shocking news. Although only in his mid-fifties, he had two potentially fatal health issues – a brain aneurysm, which could rupture at any time, and a blood clot aimed at his heart. Leaf, his newly adopted canine family member, proved that at some level he understood and wanted to help with the dire situation. A Dog Named Leaf: The Hero from Heaven Who Saved My Life includes a strange but true example of animal cognition that leaves readers pondering, "What do dogs really know?" Leaf's empathy went far beyond what scientists believe dogs are capable of knowing and doing.

     Although the experiences described in the audiobook are harrowing at times, as Leaf and Allen each face life-threatening situations, their journey ends happily for both of them. Throughout the audiobook, humor cuts through the potential tragedies and lifts the Anderson family's and reader's spirits. By the end of the story, Allen and Leaf have formed a strange, wonderful, mysterious, and spiritual partnership that as one reviewer commented, "transcends the pet book genre by leaps and bounds."

     The audiobook takes readers on a dual journey of healing and trust for Allen and Leaf in three segments: The Journey of Two Souls Begins; Nightmares, Battles, and Surrender; Uncertain Outcomes: and Transformation and Healing.

©2012 Allen Anderson and Linda Anderson (P)2013 Allen Anderson and Linda Anderson

What the Critics Say

     "I am convinced of Leaf's ability to sense what Allen needed. Readers will feel as if they know Lef, and they'll grow to love him too." (Jeffrey Moussaieff Masson, Ph.D., New York Times bestselling author of When Elephants Weep and Dogs Never Lie about Love)

     "A dramatic dual journey that explores intangibles of health and healing without attempting to explain them away. This is truly the most unusual dog book - ever." (Dr. Marty Becker, resident veterinarian for The Dr. Oz Show and Good Morning America)

     "This book is impossible to put down. Read and share it widely." (Dr. Marc Bekoff, Ph.D, animal cognition expert and author of The Emotional Lives of Animals)

www.audible.com/pd/ref=sr_1_1?asin=B00CP...

Finding Comfort after Losing Your Pet

     Are you going through the heartache of pet loss?

     Do you have a friend or relative who has had a pet die?

     Would you like to know that others understand how you are feeling?

     If your answer is yes to any of these questions, you are in the right place. Saying Goodbye to Your Angel Animals is a book and website devoted to helping you remember, mourn, and honor your beloved pet.

     Saying Goodbye to Your Angel Animals is also the title of our book, published by New World Library. We hope this book will offer consolation to those who must deal with the underestimated depth of grief that accompanies a pet’s death or disappearance from home.

     Read excerpts from the book at website, www.sayinggoodbyetoyourangelanimals.com/. See if it helps you to navigate the troubled sea of emotions that have poured over you following the death of a pet.

Who We Are

     We are Allen and Linda Anderson, authors of a series of popular anthologies published by New World Library about the benefits and complexities of human animal companionship.

     Over the years, thousands of people have written and called us about their experiences with pet loss. We have personally experienced the loss of our own animal family members. So we know firsthand how devastating pet loss is and what a hole it leaves in a person’s heart.

     We have designed our book and website to assure you that you are not alone. That what you are feeling is a normal aspect of grief and loss.

     Consider holding a pet memorial service or making some other tribute to the animals who have graced your life.

We believe:

--The love of your animal companion will never die.
--Only the physical body is gone.
--The spirit lives on.
--You’ll see your pet in heaven.

     If you believe these things and they bring you comfort, it doesn’t matter what any one else says. You know they are true. We support you in the spiritual approach to pet loss and healing.

     We are here for you. We understand. We care.

Animal blessings,
Allen and Linda Anderson
Founders, Angel Animals Network
www.angelanimals.net

EMOTIONAL-SUPPORT ANIMALS

The April 22, 2013 issue of TIME Magazine had a thought-provoking article about emotional-support animals (ESA), "Comfort Creatures: Support Animals Help Patients, but That Lizard May Be Against the Law."

The National Service Animal Registry (NSAR) certifies service and emotional-support animals and has registered 7,000 of them since 1995. The NSAR certifies dogs,cats, pigs, birds, mice, rats, hedge hogs, iguanas, rabbits, and goats. These animals can then wear vests or patches and have ID cards to prove they are necessary to the people they serve.

Mental health professionals can prescribe an animal's companionship forpatients to help them cope with emotional and psychological symptoms. But health departments can counteract the diagnosis with laws that restrict farm animals. Neighbors can and do report pet owners who they believe are keeping pets or traveling with them illegally.

According to the article there is a confusing gray area about what constitutes a service animal and who needs them. With physical disability, everyone can see why the person needs the animal. With emotional issues, the reasons for having a service animal may not be visible. "Complicating the issue further was the growing diversity of critters aiding people with physical disabilities: boa constrictors that warn their owners of oncoming seizures; capuchin monkeys that help quadriplegics eat and drink; parrots that verbally calm owners who suffer from bipolar disorder."

The article doesn't mention a further complication - people who make up their own vests and badges in order to self-certify a pet. Sometimes, this is due to the fact that someone with a disability is on a long waiting list to receive a professionally trained service animal or can't afford to pay for one. Someone wrote to us that she couldn't bear to be without her dog and had "faked" a vest that allowed the dog to go everywhere with her.

What do you think about emotional-support animals? Have you had an animal officially or informally who offered you so much emotional support that you had to have him or her with you everywhere?

Send your story to angelanimals@aol.com or post it on Facebook at our "Angel Animals" page.

Allen and Linda Anderson

Angel Animals Network -- Where Pets Are Family

www.angelanimals.net

A DOG NAMED LEAF -- www.adognamedleaf.com

TWO TO SHARE THE LOVE

With our crazy schedule, sometimes it takes planning to make sure interviews about our new book A DOG NAMED LEAF go smoothly. Last Sunday (March 31, 2013), Allen had to find a mini-office at the Philadelphia airport where he could have a quiet space for calling in for a radio interview. He was in-between flights and squeezing in the interview before boarding the next plane.

Meanwhile in Minneapolis, Linda sat in a comfortable chair at the WCCO Radio (local CBS affiliate) studio to also be part of the interview. Normally we can take visual cues from each other about which of us would be best to answer questions. This time, we relied on the host to ask questions directly to each of us.

Even with the obstacles, it was fun to talk about our relationship with the amazing and incredible dog Leaf who changed and healed our lives in so many ways. Host Roshini Rajkumar was wonderful and as Linda says, even more beautiful in person -- inside and outside.

If you would like to listen to the interview, visit WCCO's News and Views with to hear it.  The website is minnesota.cbslocal.com/audio-on-demand/n... Click on "3-31-13 - News and Views: 1PM Hour" to listen to our segment. The interview is about 19 minutes into the hour.

What would you say about your pet if you were doing a radio interview?

Allen and Linda Anderson

Angel Animals Network

Where Pets Are Family

www.angelanimals.net

A DOG NAMED LEAF

www.adognamedleaf.com

Allen and Linda Can Help You Write and Publish Your Animal Stories

Writing for the Pet Book and Magazine Market 04/20/13-04/20/13 | Saturday | 1:00-4:00 p.m.

'Teaching Artist: Allen Anderson and Linda Anderson

Ages: Adult

Location: Open Book-Loft Classroom, Minneapolis, Minnesota

Reg $49.50 | Mem $44.55 | Low inc. $34.65

In 2009, Publishers Weekly called pet books, "...so popular that they appear bulletproof even in a down market." Two out of three American homes have pets, and in 2012 owners spend $53 billion on their pet family members. Publishers of nonfiction books and magazines are actively looking for pet books and articles that will become their Marley & Me or Dewey the Library Cat.

In this class, you will learn how to break into the pet book and article market as a self-published or traditionally published author with a variety of angles and options-memoirs, articles, blogs, anthologies, self-help, inspirational, photo-journals, novels, and funny takes on human-pet relationships. You will find out how to build credibility with animal lovers, deal with hot-button issues, and access a platform of potential readers.

This class will include exercises to help you develop the craft of writing compelling true stories about human-animal-connection for publication or for pleasure plus a handout listing magazines and publishers that currently publish pet books and articles. Small copy fee payable to the teaching artists.

Read more about this class and instructors at www.loft.org/classes/detail/?loft_product_id=15766

Good news from Allen & Linda about A DOG NAMED LEAF

The American Society of Journalist and Authors (ASJA) has selected A DOG NAMED LEAF by Minnesota authors Allen Anderson with Linda Anderson (Globe Pequot/Lyons Press) as one of the winners of the prestigious 2013 ASJA Awards in the Lifestyle/Memoir category. It’s the story of how one man and one dog came together at exactly the right time for miracles to occur. This award is like the Academy Awards for authors in that it is given by your peers. Some of the best writers in the country submitted books for consideration. The awards will be given out at the evening cocktail party in New York as part of the ASJA conference on Thursday, April 25. asja.org/for-writers/annual-writing-awar...

Please share this announcement with your dog loving social media friends.

Pets and people, an undeniably vital bond, February 18, 2013
By C. Korpi (Minneapolis, MN)

BOOK REVIEW: A Dog Named Leaf: The Hero from Heaven Who Saved My Life (Paperback)

I learned a long time ago that our animal companions often serve as our most valuable teachers of life's most important lessons. In his book "A Dog Named Leaf," Allen Anderson poignantly illustrates this phenomenon when he shares the deeply personal story of his terrifying journey through a life-threatening health crisis of his own and how allowing a seemingly "damaged" rescue dog into his world around then gave him the insight and strength to get through this trying time.

I, too, adopted a rescued dog with "issues." Just as Anderson did, I have watched my Westie's struggles to maintain a sense of security in a world that had shown him nothing but uncertainty, instability and rejection. As was the case with Leaf, his fears made him his own worst enemy, causing him to mask his fears with aggression. As Leaf and Anderson bonded ever-more deeply, Leaf underwent a profound change. Seeing his sweet cocker spaniel's unique personality, courage and trust emerge despite having the odds stacked against him no doubt bolstered Anderson when his own life was in the balance.

This book is written in the clear, honest, approachable style of someone whose heart is open to sharing with others a glimpse of himself at his most vulnerable. That kind of human courage is equivalent to Leaf's transformation from a terrified pup into a dog with a big job to do in this lifetime, namely to save his two-legged father's spiritual life and thus his physical life as well. Together, they found ways to deeply appreciate living in the moment, rejoicing in the little things so often overlooked.

These are lessons we all need to be reminded of, and here we have Allen Anderson and Leaf to thank for helping us all to be sure to make the most of our own lives and relationships.

--Sid Korpi, author of "Good Grief: Finding Peace After Pet Loss"

A Dog Named Leaf — A book review
By Jan Williams, The Poodle (& dog) Blog

A Dog Named Leaf: The Hero from Heaven Who Saved My Life by Allen Anderson with Linda Anderson
I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book. I have read so many books about how a dog saved the human owner from depression/loneliness/alcoholism/ etc. that the theme has almost become a cliché and the books often lapse into sentimentality.

A Dog Named Leaf is anything but a cliché.

It is a beautifully written, carefully edited book filled with love, humor and spirituality with photos of Leaf scattered throughout.

Shortly after adopting Leaf, an abandoned and somewhat emotionally damaged shelter dog, Anderson learns that he has a life threatening brain aneurism that requires surgery. Facing reality with his supportive wife Linda, co-author of the book, they have to come to terms that he could die during the surgery, make a full recovery, or live with diminished brain function.

Although the surgery is successful, he faces a long and often frightening road to recovery. As Leaf transforms from an insecure pup into a dog with a big job to help his owner survive, he gives the author the courage and insight to get through this difficult time.

Living busy lives, people often think of dogs as just charming little companions, not always aware that they have a wisdom and spirituality that transcends our human understanding. As Anderson points out: This little black cocker spaniel, abandoned and thrown out like someone’s trash, had been nothing less than a spiritual giant in my life.

Anderson confesses that he was reluctant to write the book about his experiences with Leaf. Any time we attribute qualities to our dogs that scientists in their pathetic experiments can’t verify, we risk ridicule.

I looked at Leaf and recognized him for what he is: a heroic soul from heaven in a small dog body.

The Poodle (& dog) Blog: thepoodleanddogblog.typepad.com/the_pood...

A DOG NAMED LEAF is a moving story of a real family, with real challenges who had an amazing experience when they adopted a little Cocker Spaniel.

This is a well written, and touching story I highly recommend. People who question a dog’s ability to connect with their humans, on an emotional level, may well be persuaded to take another look at that question. Allen & Linda Anderson make a compelling case for believing. Their rescue of Harley (renamed Leaf) does not over time appear to be just a random happenstance. Instead, it was a meeting and relationship that was “meant to be”.

When life threw Allen Anderson a huge medical curve ball, LEAF was right there for the entire journey. Not only that, but Leaf was the only being Allen often felt he could express himself to during some of his darker times.

--Chazz's Literary Corner -- Book Review

"I wasn’t sure I was going to like this book. I have read so many books about how a dog saved the human owner from depression/loneliness/alcoholism/ etc. that the theme has almost become a cliché and the books often lapse into sentimentality. A Dog Named Leaf is anything but a cliché. It is a beautifully written, carefully edited book filled with love, humor and spirituality with photos of Leaf scattered throughout..."

--Jan Williams, The Poodle (& dog) Blog, March 3, 2013

thepoodleanddogblog.typepad.com/the_pood...