Until Tuesday Author: | Language: English | ISBN:
B004Z8T234 | Format: PDF
Until Tuesday Description
"We aren't just service dog and master; Tuesday and I are also best friends. Kindred souls. Brothers. Whatever you want to call it. We weren't made for each other, but we turned out to be exactly what the other needed."
A highly decorated captain in the U.S. Army, Luis Montalvan never backed down from a challenge during his two tours of duty in Iraq. After returning home from combat, however, the pressures of his physical wounds, traumatic brain injury, and crippling post-traumatic stress disorder began to take their toll. Haunted by the war and in constant physical pain, he soon found himself unable to climb a simple flight of stairs or face a bus ride to the VA hospital. He drank; he argued; ultimately, he cut himself off from those he loved. Alienated and alone, unable to sleep or bend over without pain, he began to wonder if he would ever recover.
Then Luis met Tuesday, a beautiful and sensitive golden retriever trained to assist the disabled. Tuesday had lived amongst prisoners and at a home for troubled boys, blessing many lives; he could turn on lights, open doors, and sense the onset of anxiety and flashbacks. But because of a unique training situation and sensitive nature, he found it difficult to trust in or connect with a human being until Luis.
Until Tuesday is the story of how two wounded warriors, who had given so much and suffered the consequences, found salvation in each other. It is a story about war and peace, injury and recovery, psychological wounds and spiritual restoration. But more than that, it is a story about the love between a man and dog, and how together they healed each other's souls.
- Audible Audio Edition
- Listening Length: 8 hours and 3 minutes
- Program Type: Audiobook
- Version: Unabridged
- Publisher: Audible Studios
- Audible.com Release Date: May 4, 2011
- Whispersync for Voice: Ready
- Language: English
- ASIN: B004Z8T234
Until Tuesday is much more than the feel-good story about service dogs I was expecting. Luis Carlos Montalván's book provides a brief but uncompromising look at the conduct of America's most recent military incursion into Iraq and the impact it had on soldiers who were placed in impossible positions. It also indicts businesses that discriminate against assistance dogs. None of that should put off dog lovers who want a feel-good story; Montalván's relationship with Tuesday, his golden retriever, is at the book's heart, and it is deeply moving.
The first three chapters imaginatively recreate Tuesday's training, including a look at Tuesday's life in prison while he participated in the Puppies Behind Bars program, bonding with an inmate and helping the inmate hold onto his humanity in an inhumane environment. Tuesday also put in time at Children's Village, where troubled kids learn about responsibility and success by helping to train service dogs.
The next five chapters tell Montalván's story. It mirrors writing that came out of the Vietnam War in its complaint that the nation's leaders lied to the public, neglected the troops, and did too little to help veterans.
Montalván -- a National Guard officer who had been in uniform for more than a decade -- arrived at Al-Waleed, Iraq, in 2003. While working to keep arms and insurgents from crossing into Iraq from Syria, Montalván was ambushed and barely escaped assassination. The severity of his injuries (both physical and psychological) wasn't immediately recognized -- in part because he refused the requests of medics who wanted him to go to Baghdad for x-rays.
Thank you Mr. Montalvan and to all those who have and continue to serve our country! I recently lost my husband, a decorated Viet Nam veteran to the completely unexpected act of suicide. He suffered from depression and PTSD. I arrived home from work on December 22, 2011 to discover him, causing me to completely collapse. I am now being treated for extreme anxiety and PTSD. This was never a journey I ever imagined I would be taking. Through all of this, a friend of mine mentioned to me that I should read the book Until Tuesday, he said although you do not have a military background I see the similarities in your journeys and struggles.
You see I have an emotional support service dog, Winter. Winter was a Christmas gift to me from my beloved husband, George. I had always wanted a puppy under the Christmas tree and he gave that to me six years ago. On that December night upon my arrival home as I said I collapsed and from that moment to the present Winter has not left my side. She nudges me if I am getting anxious, most times before I realize it my self, she will take my finger or the sleeve of my shirt and guide me away from the situation or she will go away from me and continue to bark until I go to her. She will also wake me from the nightmares I continue to have. Winter has made it possible for me at the present time, and is the only reason I am able to function at all. My friend recognized this and supported me however he said upon reading Until Tuesday, it made him understand just what Winter does for me. Until Tuesday is an honest look at the life struggles that Mr. Montalvan has endured and how he has continued on his journey of healing.
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