War Hero: The Unlikely Story of A Stray Dog, An American Soldier and the Battle of Their Lives

2015 | History & Politics | Natural World

The dramatic and heartfelt story of the Great War's most unlikely hero – a Parisian stray dog named Rags.

On a July evening in 1918, four brutal years into World War I, a young American soldier, private James Donovan, stumbled on a pile of rags while lost on the pitch-black the streets of Paris. Unbeknownst to Donovan, the little terrier he found hiding under the bundle that night would go on to save the lives of countless American soldiers on the battlefields of France and change the way wars are fought. In "War Hero," acclaimed historian Stephan Talty (author of A Captain's Duty) tells an unforgettable tale of friendship, loyalty and survival set against the carnage of the Great War.

Rags’ exploits made him famous back in America, where he became one of the inspirations for the modern “war dog.” He led parades down Broadway, accepted a handful of medals and became more popular than some 5-star generals. But it’s a private story that's at the heart of "War Hero": the unbreakable bond formed between a homesick soldier and a Parisian mutt who had no place in the world until he found one in the trenches of the Meuse-Argonne.

Stephan Talty is the author of two previous bestselling Singles, The Secret Agent and Operation Cowboy. His writing has been published in the New York Times, GQ, the Irish Times and Men's Journal. His most recent book is Under the Same Sky: From Starvation in North Korea to Salvation in America.

Stephan Talty (Author)