Leave the Dogs at Home

"Arbogast delivers a raw and honest narrative of her life as a lover, a widow, and a woman. . .The theme of death and life, both literally and figuratively, are navigated with such emotion, it seems natural to empathize with the author in sadness, joy, love, and uncertainty as her longtime companion (later husband) Jim combats cancer. . . An excellent choice for those touched by grief, ready for a change, or just wanting to read a beautifully written memoir."—Library Journal

"A genre-busting memoir of grief and survival . . . Arbogast's rugged, honest account is as fresh, inspiring, and unconventional as she clearly is."—Bloom Magazine

"Life, just as a garden, does not have to be perfect and neat to be complete. Leave the Dogs at Home serves as a prime example of how a humble experience in the outdoors can come to our aid in times of need and healing."—Bruce W. Bytnar, Managing Director, Boxerwood Nature Center and Woodland Garden

"In this stunning debut, Claire Arbogast infuses death with life, giving readers both the gut-punch of grief as well as the warmth of a life well lived. Candid, powerful, and unrelenting, Arbogast's pain becomes our pain, and her love becomes our love."—B.J. Hollars, author of This Is Only a Test

"Leave the Dogs at Home mines the messy, graceful territory of life lived in the midst of upheaval; the roughness and tenderness of it all.  Sharp and engaging, this beautiful memoir invites us to think about resilience and reconnection with the strongest parts of Self."—Beth Lodge-Rigal, Creative Director, Women Writing for (a) Change of Bloomington, IN

"This very personal memoir is a gift of insightful reflection on how weathering difficult situations and transitions can help us grow and transform and blossom again. The vivid imagery and flowing words were a healing balm. Claire Arbogast has had the courage to find her voice, her true being, and share it."—Gwen Bottoms, Aging to Sage-ing Facilitator

"Claire Arbogast's deeply moving memoir records with honesty and clarity how she managed to move forward with her life despite the death of her husband. Her story beautifully depicts the aftermath of deep personal loss."—Carrol Krause, author of Showers Brothers Furniture Company: The Shared Fortunes of a Family, a City, and a Univers

"By the time I finished reading Leave the Dogs at Home, I felt sure I was holding a future classic. The best thing about Claire Arbogast, besides her wonderful writing, is her hard-headed sense of intimacy and her stubborn determination to live a life of love—whatever craziness and jury-rigging that might require from the heart."—Bob Shacochis, author of The Woman Who Lost Her Soul

"Leave the Dogs at Home is a memoir for and about adults and their very real lives. Claire and Jim take nearly a lifetime to move into marriage only to discover Jim has terminal cancer. But this is not so much a book about grief as it is about love. Readers will share that love and arrive at the end both stronger and wiser."—Jesse Lee Kercheval, author of Space: A Memoir and My Life as a Silent Movie

"Claire Arbogast rewrites the stages of grief in this raw, sometimes unsettling, always compelling memoir that takes us backward and forward in time from the moment her intense, complicated husband is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Leave the Dogs at Home challenges the conventional wisdom about love, marriage, loss, survival, and grace in ways that are bound to make you think about your own life."—Barbara Shoup, author of Looking for Jack Kerouac