Book Review by Samantha Dehring

Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine & a Miracle, by Major Brian Dennis, Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery

When the story begins, Nubs is just a nameless dog-of-war living in Iraq. No human, no name, no belly rubs and no love. This is when Major Brian Dennis befriends a stray dog and names him Nubs, because his ears had been cut off to signify that he was an Iraqi dog-of-war. Later Major Dennis has to leave the fort where Nubs lives. When Major Dennis comes back to the fort, Nubs greets him with a giant gash in his side! The team medic cleans Nubs and Major Dennis nurses Nubs back to health. Keeping Nub was a very touchy situation because soldiers are forbidden by Army rules to keep pets. Each time Major Dennis’ team left the fort Nubs chased after the caravan but he could not keep up and was always left behind. One time when Major Dennis left, Nubs chased the caravan and as usual he fell behind. Only this time, instead of returning to the outpost, he continued on. He crossed 70 miles of hostile desert to get to Major Dennis! Nubs found him at a fort on the Jordanian Border. There the soldiers made him a dog house and gave him a blanket and a collar. Best of all he got belly rubs everyday. Now, two soldiers from outside the team reported Nubs. The team was given just four days to get rid of Nubs. Major Dennis and his team collected money and enlisted the help of family and friends to send Nubs to Los Angeles. Nubs waited there for Major Dennis to return home. Now Nubs has a name, a human, belly rubs, a home and most importantly, love.

I think that my favorite part is the love and how Nubs touched so many lives. This really proves the old saying, “dogs are man’s best friend.” All you do is give them your heart and they give you theirs. Simple as that! They will always believe the best in you. Nubs believed that Major Dennis would find a way to keep him safe, just like Penny, my dog knows I will take care of her.

Review written by Samantha Dehring