Book Review: Mutual Rescue by Carol Novello and Ginny Graves

I’ve got a soft spot for animals, particularly dogs. I married a woman whose motto is “Love me, love my cat.” It’s always been a bargain in my favor, even when Tom, the orange-striped tabby cat she brought into our marriage, would try to sleep on my head. We have four rescues in our house currently, two dogs and two cats.

A few weeks ago, I was on Bonnie D. Graham’s show with three other people. Carol Novello was one of the other panelists. She’s a Harvard MBA. Prior to founding Mutual Rescue, she was the president of Intuit’s Master Builder Software, VP/General Manager of QuickBooks Online, along with a host of other senior executive positions. Carol left all of that to found Mutual Rescue.

From the book: Mutual Rescue is a national initiative focused on changing the conversation from “people or animals” to “people and animals” with the aim of elevating the cause of animal welfare.

As an animal lover, I know that having animals in your life is beneficial. Mutual Rescue proves it.

The book tells stories of pets – dogs, cats, horses, pigs, and more – and how they have saved the people that adopted them. The stories are heartwarming. The last half of each chapter is the science behind the benefit of life with animals. Good, documented, peer-reviewed science on how having a pet reduces anxiety, improves resilience, improves recovery from substance abuse, reduces recidivism, and helps you deal with grief, to name just a few.

Mutual Rescue has also made some short movies. Eric & Peety was the first and has been viewed over 100 million times. There’s a good chance you’ve seen it. 

It’s a good book and a great cause. Please check out Mutual Rescue the organization. Then go rescue yourself by rescuing an animal.