Our family dog (a.k.a. my 14 year old first child) passed away a few weeks ago. She was such a good dog; spunky, loving, and vocal. Needless to say I have been absorbing any kind of animal love with extra zeal since then in a senseless attempt to fill the void.
A few days after her passing I was contacted by Sharon Lee Hart with a request for me to review her book, Sanctuary: Portraits of Rescued Farm Animals. I jumped at the chance. Sharon posted the book to me in the mail and I lapped it up upon receipt.
Flipping through the book it becomes abundantly clear that Sharon took the time to get to know the animals so that she would be able to capture their true essence in her photographs. Sharon writes in the introduction,
“My process for taking these photographs was to sit and wait for the animals to approach me. Once they did, I was greeted in a variety of ways. Memorably, Amelia the turkey nuzzled my neck and gave me a ‘hug,’ and Dee Dee the donkey rubbed her face on my cheek and rested her head on my shoulder.”
Looking at the pictures of the animals and reading their stories as told by those who rescued them and care for them on a daily basis has been healing for me. I am encouraged to know that there is so much goodness surrounding these animals whose lives were once fraught with terror and sadness. Goodness prevailed.
I highly recommend Sharon’s book for the gorgeous photography, stories, and essays written by Karen Davis (President and Founder of United Poultry Concerns), Kathy Stevens (Founder of the Catskill Animal Sanctuary), and Gene Bauer (Founder of Farm Sanctuary). .
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10% of the proceeds from books sold through www.farmanimalsanctuaryproject.com will be donated to the sanctuaries.
Click HERE to purchase.
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A limited number of prints are available for purchase in sizes ranging from 8 x 8″ up to 40 x 40″.
Please contact Sharon via e-mail for a price list – sharonleehart@gmail.com Click HERE to learn more about the project.
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Sydney (1998-2012)