The latest book from best-selling author W. Bruce Cameron (A Dog’s Purpose) is A Dog’s Way Home, the heartwarming and exciting story of a stray pit bull named Bella who becomes separated from Lucas, the man who rescued her, and manages to navigate the 400 mile journey back to him. In an interview, he talked about writing from a dog’s perspective and what it really means to have a home.
Do you think that somehow the just-right dog finds us instead of the other way around?
I believe it's a lot easier to find the perfect dog than the perfect girlfriend, that's for sure. There are probably many, many canine "soul mates" waiting out there for you. And yes, when they do come along, "just-right" is the best way to describe the wonderful bond between them and us. Bella and Lucas come together under very unusual circumstances, but from the very first instant they know they are right for each other.
Why did you choose to write about a pit bull, a breed that, as your book describes, often provokes a very negative reaction?
Because I have met some pit bulls and they were among the most loving, gentle dogs I've ever encountered. People are misinformed if they think that people-aggression is part of any breed's DNA: we've been controlling the evolution of canines for tens of thousands of years and if dogs literally bit the hands feeding them, we did not allow those animals to reproduce. Yes, certain environments and training methods can harm any dog's emotional health and turn it into a biter, but it doesn't come out of the womb that way. To discriminate against a dog because of how it looks is a ridiculous waste of time and an injustice.
Bella is a wonderful dog, utterly devoted, but she has some pit bull in her so despite reality, she is banished by law.
What kind of research did you do about veterans, especially disabled veterans, to make your portrayal accurate?
I was fortunate enough to have a "back stage" pass to a VA hospital and was given literature to help me understand the ex-military mindset. Also, in this world, a simple search turns up testimonials, articles, etc. I do hope that readers pick up on one of the novel's themes, which is that we owe our honorable men and women in uniform a great debt.
How can animals be especially important to people who are disabled or traumatized?
Aside from the training that enables dogs to perform certain tasks, canines provide comfort, support, and endless love and devotion. A dog's love can quiet a lot of internal storms and heal emotional wounds. Bella instinctively knows this, sensing how her presence can calm and soothe people who are suffering.
What is most helpful to you in putting yourself in the mind of a dog? Does watching your own dogs help?
My favorite thing to do is go to the dog park and watch the dogs interact with each other. It doesn't take long to realize that any sort of human interpretation of canine communication is absolutely worthless. Dogs do things the way they do because they are dogs. Sometimes that is the only explanation for weird behavior. You may think you can tell what's going on in their minds, but their body language is entirely different than ours.
My job is to put a human spin on dog thought. But sometimes I cannot explain what in the world is going on. I do know, though, that a dog is completely devoted, and will find its way back to us if given a chance.
How does telling the story from the perspective of the dog help you connect to the reader?
Dogs may be simple creatures, but they are optimistic, joyous, curious, and full of life. I have found that keeping my language spare (because a dog, after all, doesn't need the linguistic complexity of a human) makes it approachable for far younger readers than my initial intended audience. And approaching the world with so much love and happiness gives readers a wonderful time-out from the modern world's travails.
Sure, bad, dangerous things happen to Bella as she makes her trek across the Rocky Mountain Wilderness, but she doesn't really seem to notice.
How do you let the reader know things that your narrator does not always understand?
I love playing with Bella's interpretation of the world. Like when she describes herself as "hunting" when what she is really doing is tipping over a trash can. Bella presents life as she sees it and we humans have to figure out what she is really talking about.
Were there real-life stories of dogs making extraordinary journeys thatinspired you?
There are jaw-dropping stories out there of dogs finding their way back after having been abandoned or lost. Yes, they inspired and amazed me, and I knew I wanted to tell a story of such a journey from a dog's point of view.
Bella is a dog with an unusual relationship with cats. What made you decide to include that?
Honestly, my first thought was to present nothing but danger to Bella. Fight the cougar, fight the bear, fight the coyotes, nearly drown, etc. But I think that's pretty much the standard template for this type of story, andI wanted something more interesting and complex. Starting with Bella's birth among the cats, I had the inspiration that perhaps I could turn the formula around and present a truly unique story.
How does Bella know that someone is about to have a seizure?
I don't know. But there are many documented cases of dogs figuring out a seizure is about to happen, and humans have exploited this ability and trained dogs as seizure alert animals. My guess is that it has to do with the astounding ability to smell things that people simply can't.
What does home mean to a dog?
Home is us, the dog's people. We think of a home as our place where we kick off our shoes and watch TV and forget to take out the garbage (this is allegedly what happens at my home, anyway, though I don't remember when, during my wedding vows, I agreed that I was the garbage man). Dogs think of home as being wherever we are. If we're camping, the tent is home. A hotel room is home. They obviously know where they live, but as far as they know when we load them up for a car ride they are leaving that place and will never return, which is fine as long as we are there with us. So that's why Bella lifts her nose to the wind and sets off on a dangerous journey. She wants to "do Go Home" because she wants to be with her family.