I really, really hate writing bad reviews. But then I also really, really hate it when people cut and paste (or possibly paraphrase) information off of the Internet and try to sell it to people. As a freelance editor, I ran into this a lot. People just want to slap some information together and call it a book. I don't know that this is what Macallagh did in this offering. She claims to be an experienced dog trainer. But when all of the information in your book can very easily be acquired through a simple Google search, there's really not a lot of added value to your book. And, as a reader, I find this a bit insulting and quite irritating.
I decided to read this book because, at the time, it was free, and I have a puppy. She's a great dog and I was able to train her to do all of the things in this book in a few days when I first got her several months ago. We are still struggling a bit with potty training--and I have tried every thing mentioned in this particular book. So, it wasn't insightful in the area that I needed help in, and if even I know how to get my puppy to sit, lay down, stay, and heel, well, you don't have to be an experienced dog trainer to be able to do that.
Maybe if I could get my dog to heal instead....
The best part about this book is that it's a super quick read. I think I read the whole thing in twenty minutes. However, that really shouldn't be the best thing about a book.
Oh, and the list of websites in the back where you can find all of the information for free is also good. Or, you could just Google "puppy training" and you're covered. For reals.
Also, as a teacher I was a little insulted when the dog trainer author went off on a tangent about how students are given credit for being close in math nowadays. Say what? What school are you referring to and how exactly do you know this? Not in my school! And.... what does this have to do with getting my puppy to stop leaving random puddles in the kitchen?
The grooming information can basically be summed up thusly: Get your dog groomed.
Perhaps as we start to move out of the era when Amazon paid the same rate for all Kindle Unlimited titles regardless of page number we will start to move away from people furiously throwing short, meaningless compilations of information off of the 'net onto an author page and calling themselves writers. That was the idea, anyhow. (I will say it doesn't appear as if this book is currently enrolled in the KDP program, so perhaps I am off on a tangent now.) In the meantime, I will continue to stick with the information I learned at the few classes I took several years ago at the local PetCo to help my puppy. Does that make me an expert? I did sleep at a a Holiday Inn last night....
Maybe someday I will write a book about how to get your dog to pee in your kitchen (it's really easy--give her a lot of water and then ignore her for a few minutes).
If you'd like to read my two star Amazon review, you can find it here (I don't believe in one star reviews.) If you'd like to give this one a read yourself, you can find it here. It's currently priced at $1.49. Let me know what you think!
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