Pets' Letters to God

by Mark Bricklin

Charming illustrations and a clever, if at times poignant, wit mark a whimsical collection of almost one hundred letters from a variety of animals who write to God asking whether heaven has a scent, why there is thunder, and more. Original.

Genres: Animals, Humor, Nonfiction, Religion

96 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Laura Lee · Rating 1 out of 5]

A couple of cute ones, but overall not a very good book.

[Victoria Smith · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very cute, and funny too.....

[Helen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not funny. A waste of time.

[Ren · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute book.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a cute little book.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Just a fun, little feel good book.

[Sean Sheridan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Funny and irreverent

[Sharon Zink · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute.

[Pamela · Rating 5 out of 5]

this was a cute book with funny stories supposedly animals writing letters to God..Everything from dogs,cats,birds , fish and I don't know but they are cute and funny enjoy

[Jolynn · Rating 2 out of 5]

It could be so good… but it’s not funny, not touching, just blah.

[Marianne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really cute and adorable

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this book on the same day I read 'Cats' Letters to Santa'. This book is a cute, quick read in which the author hypothesizes about what our furry and feathered friends ask God in their prayers or letters. Clearly the author doesn't feel that the pets are very sophisticated, as the letters are only a couple sentences long and ask simple questions. It's a skinny book and I read it in about 10 minutes, taking time to look at the illustrations, so I wouldn't say it's worth spending much money on. With the advent of eBooks, this is the sort of book I could see being offered on the 'free' shelf because the content is pretty sparse.
The final letter was one from a bulldog asking God if he should get a tattoo of his master's face with the words 'Semper Fi', because his master got a tattoo that looks just like him with those words. I love bulldogs, so that letter and illustration was definitely my favorite.

[Jody · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this little book! My husband got it for me one day when I was feeling down. It always cheers me up!

[Rivkah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend gave it to me for Christmas a few years ago. I thought it was a nice book and pretty funny.

[Walt · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute, little book for kids.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breezed through this while at the McQuate house. Most were uneventful but there were some gems here. I think the letters from the birds were the funniest.

[Penny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute for the animal lovers... my cat loving daughter will love this.

[Julie H. Ernstein · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pets Letters to God is a cute little board book from Hallmark that features letters written by an assortment of creatures inquiring about such imponderables as why humans don't sniff one another, whether there's thunder in Heaven, and how an outdoor animal such as a chipmunk can "get on family assistance" akin to what he's seen dogs and cats enjoy through the windows of homes. Great literature this is not, but little kids will likely enjoy this, and it will bring a brief smile to your face as you imagine the sorts of letter your own animal friend might write.

[Serg]

The pleasures of reading are not found in reading something once, casting one’s judgment on it, then forgetting about it. The greatest values and pleasures in reading, fiction in particular, lie in re-reading. Reading is re-reading, to paraphrase Nabokov. One learns most when returning to something familiar (or something no longer as familiar) and looking for the difference—the difference in the book between then and now, the difference in one’s reaction between then and now. What’s changed in the book? What’s changed in you? Then the essential questions: how and why?

Charmed as much by its premise as by its cover, this Hallmark book was the first book I ever purchased, back in the yet innocent year 2000. My mom has pushed me countless times to throw it away, but I will never. Neither hoarder nor sentimentalist am I, but this is the same spot my journey began so I am keeping this one.

So to the point. I loved reading this as a kid—it was funny and it helped me believe in God. Now I am an adult and I have no faith—so what’s different now?

First of all, this book’s humor rests upon humanizing the animals. And as much as I dislike that word ‘humanizing,’ and as much I think it’s overused and misused to the point of its death, I can think of no better word. By ‘humanizing’ I mean giving human traits to non-human animals.

Other animals never question reality. Worry, anxiety, doubts, self-pity, hesitation—these are all human endeavors. Only humans are in constant need to fill the gaping void in their souls. Other animals seem to not care. Even animals in great pain or suffering would sooner die than feel any sort of resentment towards themselves, their situation, or anyone.

What humans and other animals (mostly mammals) do share is the ability to look at the world with great wonder—to feel great joy and euphoria at existence. And the one thing all baby animals, human and non-human share is the sheer delight they take in playing. How instinctively they take to play. This book exemplifies what's shared between us (the good), while adding characteristics that are solely human (the bad).

All fictions are truths. To humanize the non-human is to see ourselves in others—that sounds to me like the beginning of wisdom.

My favorite letter is from a dog named Carla. It reads:

Dear God,
If we come back as humans, is that good or bad?

I’ve pestered God with similar queries for years, mostly concerning the afterlife of course. I can imagine God responding to both me and Carla by quoting Hamlet: There is nothing good or bad, but thinking makes it so.