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Saving Cinnamon: The Amazing True Story of a Missing Military Puppy and the Desperate Mission to Bring Her Home |
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Amazon Sales Rank: 15202
Publication Date: 2009-10-13
Release Date: 2009-10-13
Publisher: St. Martin's Press
ISBN: 0312596286
Type: Hardcover
Number Of Pages: 256
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Set against the backdrop of the war in Afghanistan, Saving Cinnamon chronicles the love story of Navy Reservist Mark Feffer and a stray puppy he bonded with while stationed outside of Kandahar. When Mark is about to return stateside, he decides to adopt Cinnamon and sets up her transport back to the U.S. But the unthinkable happens and Cinnamon is abandoned by the dog handler who was supposed to bring her home, and disappears with out a trace. Mark and his family start a desperate search for the puppy which lasts 44 days and ends dramatically when Mark and Cinnamon are finally reunited. This is a touching memoir told by Mark’s sister, who initiated the rescue efforts.
Average Rating: 
Review: 2010-03-07
Saved me from despair!
Frequently, I read "dog books" because (remember my Amazon name!) I love dogs and because I am part of a dog lover's book club. I have been in despair because the recent reads were so poorly written or, at best, simply an advertising method for some cause.
Saving Cinnamon: The Amazing True Story of a Missing Military Puppy and the Desperate Mission to Bring Her Home saved me from that despair.
Wonderful story and wonderful book! Read it at a single sitting. Because I, too, am a member of a military family, I related to what the stay-at-home part of Mark's family endured.
That may be Cinnamon's greatest gift: She gave Mark and his family something to focus on to keep the thoughts of a war zone at bay. Seems that Cinnamon had that effect on everyone she met!
The read was suspenseful even though we knew it had a happy ending. I felt myself tensing up with every obstacle that Ms. Sullivan encountered. As she did, I marveled at the willingness of people to take so much effort to help find and keep Cinnamon safe. Made me consider my fellow-man with just a tad more affection.
In the beginning of the book, I was more than a little frustrated that Cinnamon herself wasn't more a part of the story. At first, I was thinkin' "Great. I really very much appreciate Ms. Sullivan's work with Katrina rescue but what about Cinnamon!" Then - don't know if this was intentional on the part of the author or not - it occurred to me that my anxiety to "find Cinnamon" in the book was a pale imitation of what Ms. Sullivan and her brother were experiencing. If this was an intentional literary construct - divert reader from story to build a sense of anxiety and frustration - it was more than successful. I mean that sincerely!
Still want to hang Roberts up by his toes for a few days, though.
Well-written, inspiring, and heart-warming, I highly recommend this book.
DL
Review: 2010-02-18
This is a wonderful story.
This is a wonderful tale for both dog lovers, and anyone dealing with family in the military. I began to understand how each person has a different story, and a common theme, needing to feel connected to their loved ones while living in such an alien environment. Cinnamon helped every soldier she touched, in turn they will help her get home. Although there is no justice for the handler that abandons Cinnamon, there is so much hope for the soldiers who now may be able to bring their companion animals back from the place where they served. There are sad examples of bureaucracy and ignorance, There are people who deserve to be left behind. But not this dog, and her human caregivers would not give up the efforts to bring her home. We should all listen to her story and realize that anything is possible if you try hard enough, don't give up, tell enough people, get people behind you, IT CAN BE DONE. Don't just walk away because its easier than fighting for what you know in your heart is the right thing to do. We should speak out for those who can't speak for themselves, help the less fortunate, and the creatures of this earth that we call home. Cinnamon was an innocent soul that cheered the spirits of the soldiers with a wag of her tail. She asked nothing, she was just a dog. And she deserves her forever home, a real family of her own.
Review: 2010-02-01
Saving Cinnamon
This is the true story of a puppy who showed up at a U.S. military base in Afghanistan. Several of the soldiers became very attached to it. The author's brother (Mark) was serving there and he would send pictures of the puppy home to his wife. They had lost their dog and she encouraged him to bring this puppy home to the U.S.
Mark was going to be going home soon and he was worried about what would become of the puppy. He managed to find a way to send the puppy home with a dog handler who was flying out. Mark's family was at the airport in the U.S. waiting for the plane and discovered the puppy was not on board. The dog handler wouldn't say what happened to it. They let Mark know that it wasn't on board. He tried to find out what happened but wasn't very successful.
His sister decided she would try and track the puppy through some contacts she had. She found a dog rescue person who was located in Afghanistan and through e-mails and phone calls was able to convince them to try and find out what happened. This person was able to find out that the puppy was left at the airport just a few miles from where Mark was stationed. She was also able to find out where the puppy was now and able to negotiate getting the puppy back to the military base. From there Mark was able to connect with an independent contractor who wanted to go back home. The contractor accompanied Cinnamon back to the U.S.
It was very suspensful even knowing how the story was going to end. I agree that this would make a good movie.
Review: 2010-01-09
A big "awww...." for dog loves
OK, I admit it: I read this book because there was a dog on the cover. The book exceeded my expectations. Christine Sullivan shares the details of Cinnamon, an exceptionally sweet dog who turned up on a military base in Afghanistan. Just a puppy, Cinnamon won the hearts of the soldiers and sailors stationed on the base.
Christine's brother, Mark, became especially attached to Cinnamon. He arranged to send her home with a pet transportation company. The dog's hander turned out to be irresponsible. When faced with a problem connecting in Turkey, he apparently kicked the dog crate and made a scene. And Mark was left wondering where the dog had gone.
The book traces the way Christine found a dog lost half way around the world, via a series of emails and phone calls. Even when you know the outcome, the story generates suspense. Christine is a natural writer. She uses simple, clear language that's enjoyable to read. It's the kind of "invisible" writing that nonfiction authors often struggle to achieve, where we focus more on what she's writing about than on the writing. I wasn't fazed by the emails Christine reproduces. Okay, I might have skimmed a couple, but we get to hear what's happening in the voices of everyone involved in Cinnamon's rescue.
I agree with the reviewer who said this book could be a movie. Kevin Bacon could play Mark and I'm not sure who would play Christine, who's the heroine of the story as well as the narrator. Unfortunately, a movie would have the same issues as the movie Blindside. Coincidences and lucky breaks are allowed in life but not in fictional narratives.
Perhaps the luckiest break came when a contract engineer accepted Mark's offer to escort Cinnamon home on a commercial flight. It was the ultimate win-win.
Anyone who has rescued a dog knows the joy of watching a newcomer adapt to a new home. Christine wisely shares just enough of the story's happy ending, without going overboard.
As a bonus, readers get a glimpse into life in the all-volunteer military during wartime. As a forty-one year old Navy reservist, Mark gets deployed to perform Army functions. We get a sense of the boredom associated with daily life on these bases and the tedium of military travel. And we also learn how military leaders think out of the box. I loved the story of the tough Colonel who fell in love with Cinnamon, even marking out time to take her for walks.
This is one of the best nonfiction dog books I've read. I hope Christine will demonstrate her not inconsiderable writing skills in the future.
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Amazon List Price: $24.99
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