Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #618244 in Books
• Published on: 2003-09
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 160 pages

Customer Reviews

Heros with giant hearts
After attending the 2003 commemoration ceremony at the USS Intrepid and hearing Scott Shields' talk about Bear and the other SAR dogs, we couldn't NOT read this book. We've all suffered the shock of the events of September 11...this book is therapeutic. Any doubts as to the whereabouts of courage, compassion, commitment and love are put to rest in this story of Bear and the other SAR dogs and their brave handlers. You will not be unmoved.

Hero dog's story will warm your soul and break your heart
We all have a hodgepodge of visual and descriptive images of the events of 9/11 burned into our memories -- the airplanes hitting the towers, the fire and smoke, the bodies falling from the windows, the towers collapsing, the grimy, anguished rescuers. Among the most powerful of those images, for me, has been the search and rescue dogs who worked grueling days and nights alongside human workers, in the early, frantic search for survivors, and the long, grim search for the remains of the dead.

The first dog on the scene was a skilled, veteran golden retriever named Bear. By all accounts, he was an inspiration for the human rescuers and the other canine workers in those awful days. He, and the other dogs, were also a source of solace for human workers overcome by the stress and grief of what they were doing. One powerful picture shows a burly fireman kneeling, with his arms around one of these magnificent dogs, burying his face in the dog's grimy fur and sobbing. These dogs, no less than their human companions, were true heroes.

Bear, tragically, has since died of illnesses contracted at Ground Zero. But his human "dad," Scott Shields, Marine Safety Director of the NYC Urban Park Service, has written a beautiful tribute to his memory, with co-author Nancy West. "Bear: Heart of a Hero," traces Bear's life from carefree puppyhood, through search & rescue training and a lifetime of service at innumerable disaster sites, including Oklahoma City, to his magnificent service at the World Trade Center site and, as his health failed in his final year, to an amazing series of ceremonies and awards honoring his heroism. This little book is generously illustrated, and though it is conversational in tone, with no carefully crafted prose, it is riveting, and deeply moving.

Since Bear's death, a year after 9/11, Shields has devoted himself to raising the nation's awareness of the work done by these wonderful dogs and their volunteer handlers, and to raising funds to support their training, work, and veterinary care. Profits from this book go to those very worthy causes. I bought a dozen copies to give to my friends. You owe it to yourself to buy one and read it. It will make you cry, but it will warm your heart.

Wonder Dog and Wonder Owner
What can you say about Bear and Captain Shields. They epitomize the human canine bond. The book is beautifully written by a master story teller and true American hero.