'Mangakuri Mob' are captured in words, drawings

DOG PERSON: Featherston's Anneleise Hall, with her self-published poetry collection The Secret Lives of Sheepdogs, inspired by her six doggy flatmates at Mangakuri farm. PHOTOS/FILE

I am a dog person - this I make no bones about (pardon the pun). Cats are great, but there's just something about a shaggy, lolloping, dribbly pooch that never fails to lift the mood.

So, after interviewing Featherston writer/illustrator Anneleise Hall about her self-published project, a children's book in which the starring characters are all sheepdogs, I begged her to send me a copy. And, as is usual for me while in the presence of a dog, I was instantly charmed.

The Secret Lives of Sheepdogs: The Mangakuri Sketches is an endearing illustrated poetry collection inspired by the six working dogs - Fat Pam, Fred, Lilla, Sonny, Tug and Zoro - who shared Hall's "flat" at Mangakuri farm in South Wairarapa.

Incidentally, these same dogs belong to farmer Grant Muir, who appeared in multi award-winning environmental documentary River Dog.

While the dogs in the doco are heroic, chasing dairy cattle out of the Pahaoa River to prevent pollution, Hall's book captures her hairy housemates on their down-time.

Her "little ditties" epitomise, with humour and warmth, what is slightly maddening but still inherently lovable about Man's Best Friend.

Each of the "Mangakuri Mob" has their own quirks. Tug hassles Hall for a rainy-day walk, and, when he sees she's not keen, promptly falls asleep at her feet. Zoro likes to paw at and annoy the cat, Sonny keeps his paws meticulously clean, and Fat Pam rolls over for a belly rub every time someone walks past.

Whether it's that doe-eyed begging for a bite of your breakfast, jabbing you with their nose, rolling around in fresh cow pats on a walk or snoring heartily on the clean washing, dog-lovers will instantly recognise their Rover or Rex in Hall's rhymes.

Her verses are simple in structure and language, but she adds splashes of poetic colour to bring her canine subjects to life: for example, Lilla's eyebrows "waggle" as she runs through the paddock, Fred has little "twitches, woofs and snorts" as she dreams by the fire, and Fat Pam rolls "majestically on to her back, big bear paws wide open".

Most delightful are Hall's illustrations, in pencil, pastel and watercolour, many of which arose from evenings spent sketching the dogs as they slept.

The drawings are crude in parts - which adds to their charm, I thought - but the furry details around the dogs' ears, brows, muzzles, tails and chests are spot on, making them look perfectly cuddly.

And the expression on their faces as they plead for a slice of toast? Priceless!

The Secret Lives of Sheepdogs is a quick, enjoyable read - sweet-natured enough to appeal to the kids, but without being overly saccharine.

For young readers with a nanosecond attention span, it's the perfect length and a good choice for a bedtime story.

Cat people need not apply.

To order a copy of the book, please contact Anneleise Hall at anneleise@gmail.com, or visit the Facebook page www.facebook.com/SecretLivesOfSheepdogs. Copies are also available from Hedley's Bookshop.