Something New Every Day

I opened my phone this morning to this — a “historical novel” called ‘Terrierman’ by Ezio Bassano.

The ad copy from Mr. Bassano says “this book grew out of many years spent studying the history of British terriers, and particularly the working tradition from which the Jack Russell Terrier emerged.

“TERRIERMAN takes the reader back to Britain in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when terriers were not primarily dogs for the show ring, but working dogs shaped by the countryside, the Hunt, the earth and the men who worked alongside them.

“Through the story of a terrierman and his dogs, the book explores the world of working terriers, fox hunting, otter hunting, earth work, Hunts, breeders and the gradual development of the terrier breeds.

“Although written as a historical novel, its background is based on extensive historical research using period books, records, articles, photographs and contemporary sources.”

Cool.

And yet I wonder how a novel bridges a pretty long history?  Characters with Biblical longevity?

The ad blub has a kicker in the lower right corner: “For everyone who loves the true history of the Jack Russell Terrier.”

Ah yes, the true history of the man (John Russell) who bought his first dog based on appearance alone, who bought and sold dogs his whole life, who went bankrupt several times, and whose obituary never mentions terriers at all, as he was mostly a houndsman?  Is that the story we are going to be told?

Maybe. I don’t know. I do know that the last time I was sent “historical fiction” about terrier work, from a fellow in Texas who claimed to be British, it was filled with enough romance and error that I set it aside without comment. Oof!

In any case, there’s a new book out there, and folks are free to have at it.  I hope it’s good.

A quick search tells me Mr. Bassanno is Italian, and most of what he has put up that I can find on the internet is AI-animation of old photos with music added.

For those who want the true history of the Jack Russell Terrier without the novelization part, I give that away for free here >> https://terriermandotcom.blogspot.com/2014/12/the-real-john-russell-and-his-terriers.html? and in other posts.

For those looking for a practical book on terrier work, without any romance or fiction get “American Working Terriers” on Amazon >> https://a.co/d/007LwSRc. 

This book is so old, it was written before AI.  Imagine!