MY BOOSTER!

Hawn offers a memoir of his emergence from codependency and alcohol addiction with the help of his dog, Booster.

The author writes that he was raised in a household with alcoholic parents; as he entered adulthood, he says, he fell into toxic patterns in consecutive long-term relationships with two people who were addicted to alcohol and crack cocaine, respectively. He acquired Booster as a puppy in a last-ditch attempt to inspire the cocaine addict to change by taking responsibility for a dog’s care. This didn’t work, and Hawn left the relationship with Booster in tow; he soon found that his bond with the dog grew, even as he battled his own alcohol addiction: “I gave up on myself…but my Booster never did.” Eventually, Hawn got sober, and he realized that his pet had been a transformative factor in his journey back to health. However, he still was struggling with PTSD in the aftermath of his difficult relationships, so he set out to train Booster as a service dog, with great success. He began traveling the world with his canine friend, bringing him to Thailand, the Bahamas, Mexico, and elsewhere to help others train their own service dogs and to fight for disability rights. The book’s message is highly positive, effectively touching on themes from the Al-Anon program; for example, the author frequently references coincidences that he considered to be messages from his “Higher Power.” His writing style is enthusiastic but somewhat undisciplined, featuring a plethora of exclamation points and the use of all-caps words and phrases. Additionally, some parts of the memoir feel a bit repetitive, as in recollections of three separate incidents in which an airline tried to keep Hawn and Booster from boarding a plane, each exhaustively documented.

An earnest testament to the healing power of dogs that might have been improved by a stronger edit.