Will's Red Coat: The Story of One Old Dog Who Chose to Live Again

Written by Tom Ryan

Narrated by Tom Ryan

A true story of acceptance, perseverance, and the possibility of love and redemption as evocative, charming, and powerful as the New York Times bestseller Following Atticus.

Drawn by an online post, Tom Ryan adopted Will, a frightened, deaf, and mostly blind elderly dog, and brought him home to live with him and Atticus. The only owners Will ever knew had grown too fragile to take care of themselves, or of him. Ultimately, Will was left at a kill shelter in New Jersey.

Tom hoped to give Will a place to die with dignity, amid the rustic beauty of the White Mountains of his New Hampshire home. But when Will bites him numerous times and acts out in violent displays, Tom realizes he is in for a challenge.

With endless patience and the kind of continued empathy Tom has nurtured in his relationship with Atticus, Will eventually begins to thrive. Soon, the angry, hurt, depressed, and near-death oldster has transformed into a happy, gamboling companion with a puppy-like zest for discovery. Will perseveres for two and a half years, inspiring hundreds of thousands of Tom and Atticus’s fans with his courage, resilience, and unforgettable heart.

A story of a dog and an indelible bond that is beautiful, heartbreaking, uplifting, and unforgettable, Will’s Red Coat honors the promise held in every living creature, at any stage of life.

• Language: English
• Publisher: HarperCollins
• Release date: Apr 25, 2017
• ISBN: 9780062564443

Tom Ryan

Tom Ryan served as publisher and editor of the Newburyport, Massachusetts, newspaper The Undertoad for more than a decade. In 2007 he sold the newspaper and moved to the White Mountains of New Hampshire with miniature schnauzer Atticus M. Finch. Over the last five years, Tom and Atticus have climbed more than 450 four-thousand-foot peaks.

Reviews for Will's Red Coat

[755Rugby · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

I discovered this book by chance on Scribd. As a dog lover who has had to say goodbye to a number of beloved dogs, I was anticipating a tear-jerker of a story of loving and losing an old dog, and I was fine with that. What I didn’t anticipate was a meditation on being at peace with nature, finding joy in acts of kindness, the power of unsurrendering love, and discovering deep satisfaction in the simplest things in life: friendship, compassion and kindness.

I’m sure the book in print would have been moving, but Mr. Ryan’s rendition is so full of feeling that it adds another level of enjoyment and empathy. Having spent a short time in the white Mountains many years ago myself, I enjoyed the local color and Mr. Ryan’s New Hampshire twang.

The chapter on Will’s death was so poignant I had to listen in short segments, and when I got to the book’s conclusion I was sorry it had to end. Thank you for sharing your beautiful friends and loving experiences with the rest of us!

[Nancy Wowpetstuff.com · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Awesome book! Fascinating story and how the author was revealed. Definitely add to my list

[cherylk_44 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

For anyone who is a dog lover, you will fall in love with Will. Although, Will may be the star of this book, I fell in love with Atticus, Tom, and Aragorn as well. I absolutely loved that Mr. Ryan decided to take a chance on Will. I could understand his hesitation in the beginning after meeting Will and wanting to give him back. A lot of people would have done so. Yet, I think the reason that Will fought so hard and lived was because he had finally experienced what true love was with Mr. Ryan and Atticus. If you asked Atticus he would not admit it out loud that he did love Will as well.

It was easy to see how people became so inspired by Will. He was such an admirer of flowers. I knew going into this book that I was going to find myself crying but I did not realize just how overcome with emotions I would get when Will's time had come. The moments with Will surround by a house full of flowers, Aragorn saying good bye to Will, the one last mountain top hike, and the last rose flowing down the river. A must read for all dog lovers. Yet, be prepared to have the tissues ready.

[maggie1944 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

A very sweet book about Tom and his sidekick Atticus (hero of an earlier book: [Following Atticus]) as they "adopt" Will, a very sick abandoned miniature schnauzer. Will came to Tom and Atticus nearly blind, and totally deaf as well as barely able to walk for himself due to arthritis and who knows what else. Tom nurses Will as if he were a millionaire able to hire the best and most selfless of servants. The little dog recovers a good life, and Tom finds a new spiritual understanding of how being a servant in life is the best of discoveries. I recommend the book to those who love dogs, and who understand the spiritual side of all life, human, animal and plants.