New Book Alert: The Sounds of Fall: Reilly's Story by Karin Wyman Vardaman;. Beautiful Tail Exploring The Love Between Human and Pet

 New Book Alert: The Sounds of Fall: Reilly's Story by Karin Wyman Vardaman;. Beautiful Tail Exploring The Love Between Human and Pet

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: To Karin Wyman Vardaman, the hills are not only alive with the sounds of fall, but those sounds are credited with helping her find her dog, Reilly. In the beautiful and touching book, The Sounds of Fall: Reilly's Story, Vardaman explores the loving almost psychic connection shared between humans and their pets.

In November 1994, Vardaman's four year old English Black Lab, Reilly, went missing. Like any pet owner, Vardaman was devastated but determined to find Reilly. The book covers Vardaman's active search for the dog trying everything from putting up posters, to searching the nearby Hot Springs Canyon, to consulting a parapsychologist to search for her four legged furry best friend.

Animal lovers will be moved by the book and will relate to Vardaman's anguished search and fury when others tell her that Reilly is "just a dog." To Vardaman, Reilly was more than a dog. He was her friend, companion, and baby. He gave unconditional love, was pleased with his cushy bed and beloved stuffed toys, and never asked for anything but a brisk walk and a gentle pet on the back.

Vardaman's guilt is well realized as she blamed herself for Reilly's departure. She was haunted by the times when she left leaving her saddened lab behind waiting for her to come home. In one moving passage, Vardaman described her anticipation and hope that Reilly would come home on his own. She wrote, "I did not know if (Reilly) was alive or dead, in pain or afraid. Was he lost or in those hills or had someone taken him? Staring down the driveway, I visualized him trotting toward me, happy to be home but excited about his adventure the night before…..I waited, but it was now clear that Reilly would not be coming home on his own."

A lot of animal stories often contain beautiful descriptions of nature, and The Sounds of Fall is no exception. The opening paragraphs alone are a treat for the senses. Vardaman poetically wrote:

"The last golden leaves clung to the trees in defiance of winter's call. Angled shadows foretold shorter days and longer nights as autumn gave way to the season of slumber through nature's transitional window.

The night had surrendered to day, yet the crickets droned on, their declarations stirring an image of fatigued soldiers whose marching cadence is merely carried on by discipline. The stream stilled, the bird's song subdued, dry bush crackled under a scurrying rodent. These sounds were as distinctive as the change of color in the leaves, the shift of the sun's rays, and the cooling of the air. They anticipated the coming of winter and echoed the passing of summer. These were the sounds of fall."

It was the sounds of fall that allowed Vardaman to locate Reilly. In an act of desperation to find any clue to the Lab's whereabouts, Vardaman contacted parapsychologist, Dr. Vivien Lee-David. Lee-David predicted that Reilly was alive and that Vardaman would find him. She had a vision in which Reilly was injured, weak, hurt and waited for Vardaman near a peak southwest of her house close to water. Most importantly, that since Vardaman and Reilly were spiritually connected, she should listen to his silent cry. Based on Lee-David's suggestions, Vardaman took a makeshift pendulum that connected with her subconscious and listened to the sounds around her.

Vardaman took a long taxing trip through the nearby canyons to search for her friend. It was a journey that was physically and emotionally draining for her. There are a few chapters where Vardaman doubted her search and Lee-David's advice. The only thing that kept her going was that she was Reilly's only chance for rescue and survival. Those who are close to their pets will completely relate to the toll that the search had on Vardaman and Reilly.

But during the search, Vardaman heard and focused on the sounds around her. Her senses became more acute and she interpreted the meaning behind each sound. "I could discern the difference between a rodent scurrying under the brush and a bird rustling in the sage," Vardaman wrote. "Any change in the pattern of the sounds drew my instant attention. I felt like one of those wild animals living in the chaparral, tuned to recognize the signs of predator and prey."

While searching the ravine, Vardaman heard the trickling water,  rustling sage, clinking of a tag, and the unmistakable panting and crying of a beloved dog. 

Vardaman and Reilly's reunion melts the heart as she found her buddy with an injured hip and bruised paws and found the strength to carry him out of the canyon ravine. She hitched a ride to take them home. Reilly was treated by a veterinarian and within three months made a full recovery. 

The Sounds of Fall: Reilly's Story is a heartwarming story that reveals how deep the connection can be between human and animal. That connection allows them to hear and sense each other's presence even from great distances, to rescue one another, and to bring them home.