About this book
A dog’s loyalty is easy to praise—but what happens when danger puts it to the test?
In The Heart of a Dog, Albert Payson Terhune brings together eight stories of dogs who guard, wait, fight and forgive. Each tale places a strong animal at its center and a bond with a person at its heart. Trouble tests that bond, and courage means facing bigger animals, rough men or bad weather, sometimes at a painful cost.
Terhune knows dogs through life with his collies at Sunnybank in New Jersey. His attention rests on how a dog moves, listens and decides. These stories explore dogs as beings of character, loyalty tested by danger and time, and courage that costs something. A clear, brisk style keeps the action close and gives each tale a strong moral shape.
What you’ll discover
- Dogs with character Meet animals whose honor, pride and will make them more than charming companions.
- Loyalty under pressure Follow bonds between dogs and people as trouble puts devotion to the test.
- Courage with a cost Feel the stakes when brave dogs face threats that can leave them hurt.
- An attentive eye Notice the movements, listening and decisions that give Terhune’s dogs their vivid presence.
- Stories that move Enjoy direct sentences and short scenes that keep each animal’s choices in view.
Who will love it
For animal lovers, anyone who grew up on dog stories, and readers who enjoy short tales with a clear moral shape, loyalty, courage and the bond between dogs and their people.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- Terhune sees dogs as people of character
- Loyalty is tested by danger and time
- Courage costs something and is never wasted
- A plain style serves a simple, strong idea
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 6 h 57 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 4 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Il cuore di un cane in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Il cuore di un cane
by Albert Payson Terhune · 1924
Dogs guard, wait, fight and forgive as loyalty and courage are tested for the people and places they love.
Medium level5–10 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
In short
The Heart of a Dog is a collection of dog stories by Albert Payson Terhune, an American writer who raised collies at his home, Sunnybank, in New Jersey. He wrote for magazines and books in the early twentieth century, and his readers loved his tales of dogs who guard, wait, fight and forgive.
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
Terhune sees dogs as people of character
Terhune writes about dogs as beings with honor, pride and will. A dog in his stories is not a cute pet or a mere machine of instinct. It has a code, and it lives by that code even when it costs a great deal.
This view comes from life with collies at Sunnybank. Terhune spent years watching how his dogs treated strangers, guarded the house, and greeted the family. He turns that close watching into scenes where a dog reads a situation and acts on it with a clear sense of purpose.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Il cuore di un cane
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is The Heart of a Dog by Albert Payson Terhune about?
It is a collection of short dog stories about loyalty, courage and the bond between dogs and the people they love. Terhune shows dogs as animals with character who act bravely for their families and homes.
Who was Albert Payson Terhune?
He was an American writer and journalist who bred collies at his home, Sunnybank, in New Jersey. He became widely read for his dog stories, including his books about the collie Lad. He died in 1942.
Are the stories in The Heart of a Dog true?
They are fiction, but they draw on Terhune's long experience with collies at Sunnybank. He wrote what he saw of dog behavior and shaped it into short adventures with clear emotion and moral lines.
More by Albert Payson Terhune
All 3 booksMore like this
Our mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing





















