The Buzz
Raves and Reviews
"Bruce Coston develops the common thread to this compilation. . . He tells his stories with fervent tear-jerking details. It's a courageous and gut-wrenching account of man's mammalian companions. It's a punctilious glimpse into the lives of the creatures we love most dearly - our pets. This memoir is a reflection on what makes us human. It's a must read for anyone who cares about the lives of animals."
- D. Wayne Dworsky for The Sacramento Book Review. March 2010.
"In the years that followed (James Herriot's death), another aspect of Herriot's legacy has emerged: a new genre of veterinary memoirs such as those of Nicholas Dodman, Nick Trout, and now, with the publication of Ask The Animals, Bruce Coston. Coston's musings on his nearly 25 years of professional practice . . . are a welcome addition to the field. How Coston grew from the boy with an early desire to become a vet to the warm and caring practitioner portrayed in these stories makes for good reading and offers us a glimpse into the ever-expanding world of small animal veterinary care. Coston comes into his own when detailing the touching, humorous and, at times, sad relationships he has shared with his patients and their people. Herriot might be a hard act to follow, but Coston has proven himself up to the task."
- Best Friends Magazine. March/April 2010 issue.
"Veterinarian Coston writes warmly of his life as an animal doctor. With self-deprecation and humor, he tells the story of how he became a small-town veterinarian. Opening his own practice gave Coston exactly what he wanted -- the opportunity to use his skills to make people's beloved pets well. This worthy addition to the large genre of veterinary memoirs is among the cream of the post-Herriot crop."
- Nancy Bent in Booklist. Booklist presents book reviews from the American Library Association
"Virginia veterinarian Coston cobbles together a number of his columns from a local newspaper in this moving account of his practice. Heartbreaking vignettes include the pitch-perfect opening depiction of an elderly man's anguish over putting his dog down, Coston's own grief at the death of his beloved cat and a series of linked chapters about a wealthy man's love for his miniature dachshund. Coston leavens the somber stories with lighter moments - his first encounter with a sick chinchilla, for example, and his hilarious failure to convince a concerned caller that she isn't killing a baby chick by boiling an egg for supper. . . Coston comes off as caring and compassionate."
- Publishers Weekly
"Bruce R. Coston, DVM shows the engaging and compassionate side of being a veterinarian. In fact, you might see a composite of yourself among the pet owners described in this charming and endearing book. If you love animal stories, you won't be able to put down this wittly little book filled with vignettes of owners and the pets they love. This first-time book author . . . has a hit and I look forward to more of his wonderful stories about the patients who look to him for veterinary help. Think Dr. Doolittle meets Miss Manners."
- I Love Cats Magazine (January/February 2010)
"Bruce Coston received his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Minnesota and set up practice in Virginia in addition to writing a monthly column about animals for the Bryce Mountain Courier, a small regional newspaper. As he wrote about such fairly routine subjects as flea control, heartworm, and the benefits of neutering, he decided to address the more human side of his work, namely interacting with his patients and the people who love them. The result is a book that brims with insight, warmth, and charm. The life of a country veterinarian has never been as accessible since the bestselling books of James Herriot."
- Larry Cox for the Tucson Citizen
"Many have tried to follow in the paw prints of the brilliant James Herriot, but few have succeeded. Time to add Bruce Coston to the list of worthy wordsmiths. His debut is simply fabulous."
- Jason F. Wright, New York Times Best Selling author of Christmas Jars, The Wednesdays Letters, Recovering Charles, The James Miracle, and others.
"When I wrote Most of My Patients Are Animals in 1987, many readers told me that it made them laugh and it made them cry. I told them, 'That is my profession in a nutshell.' Dr. Coston's book, Ask The Animals, made me laugh and it made me cry."
- Dr. Robert Miller, DVM, author of Most of My Patients Are Animals and 17 other titles.
KNews FM 94.3 in Palm Springs, California did an interview with Bruce which aired on November 30, 2009 on the program, KNews Conversations with Charles Dyer. That interview has been posted on their website and can be heard by copying the link below and pasting it into your web browser address line:
http://podcasts.sixradiosites.com/knews/audio/kc121009.mp3
Incredible Pets has posted a top ten list of books that pet lovers must read. Ask The Animals was number four on that list. The list includes a veritable who's who of animal titles including Charlotte's Web,
- Incredible Pets' Top 10 Recommended reading List for Pet Loving Families
I was invited to contribute to a literary blog called Writers Read that asks writers about the books they are reading. The links below will take you to that blog posting.
- What is Bruce Coston reading?
- Writers Read: Bruce Coston
Another blog that asked me to contribute is called Coffee With A Canine which introduces writers with their dogs and a good cup of coffee. The links below will take you to that blog posting.
- Coffee with a canine: Bruce Coston & Starr
- Coffee with a Canine: Starr and Bruce Coston
- Jeff Wells, DVM. Author of All My Patients Have Tales
"Congratulations Bruce! You have written a warm, witty, compelling book that should delight the families who own the almost 140 million dogs and cats in the United States. You are much more than a veterinarian. You have a tender heart, an understanding mind and a mission. You write like a man with a calling - not just a profession."
- Art Linkletter
- TV personality and author of Kids Say The Darndest Things
"Like everyone else, I'm a sucker for pet stories. I regard Bruce as the next James Herriot so I'm telling all my friends, read him now and get in on the ground floor. This author is going places, and we are going to be reading his books for years to come."
- John Killinger, author of The Other Preacher In Lynchburg and more than 80 other titles
"Dr. Bruce Coston . . . has written a book that is about his education, finding the love of his life, the birth of his two sons and the opening of his practice in Woodstock in 1992. That is the framework on which he has hung sweet and sometimes sad stories of his own pets and those who became his clients. . . Thank you, Dr. Coston, for writing this book."
- The Bryce Mountain Courier
"Veterinarian, Smith Mountain Lake sojourner and new author, Bruce Coston takes a close, joyful and sometimes poignant look at human-animal relationships and their enduring messages that transcend boundaries of culture and time. . . The inaugural chapter of Coston's first book, Ask The Animals, will move most any reader - especially those who love their canine and feline companions - to tears."
- The Smith Mountain Eagle
See excerpts from the book See what's on the cutting room floor
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