Pets and the City: True Tales of a Manhattan House Call Veterinarian

Pets and the City: True Tales of a Manhattan House Call Veterinarian by Dr. Amy Attas tells fun stories about just as the title suggests: her experiences as a house call veterinarian in NYC. The book offers insight as to why she became a veterinarian, what it was like to build her practice, her human relationships (including meeting her husband), and her own pets. She seems like a genuine person who is truly devoted to helping animals. She also devotes time in the book to advocating for adopting shelter pets, which is a wonderful message. The reader learns about veterinary medicine and all kinds of ailments, injuries, and mishaps that pets have, and what veterinary science can do to help them.

The book might be a wonderful read for the right person. I happened to be turned off by the name dropping and celebrity gossip. It made me uncomfortable to read stories about famous people’s apartments, foibles, and embarrassing moments and made me wonder why someone so devoted to her practice would divulge so much about her human clients. I also thought that the tone of the writing was flat, in sections that should have felt emotional, like the death of a pet, the writing left me feeling emotionless. I think that maybe a good cowriter could have helped these stories come to life. Still, for the right reader, this would make for a great read.