Book Review - Yorkie Doodle Dandy

Yorkie Doodle Dandy: A Memoir:
Or the Other Woman Was a Real Dog by Wiliam A. Wynne

As a young American soldier stationed in New Guinea during World War II, Air Force PFC Bill Wynne, bought a tiny dog, breed unknown at the time, for two Australian pounds ($6.22 U.S.), from a sergeant who wanted the money to get in a poker game. The four pound terrier had been recently found in an abandoned foxhole by another soldier.

Using what he learned in a few dog training classes back home in Cleveland Ohio, along with a great deal of natural ability, Bill began training his new little companion. From basic obedience to a phenomenal assortment of tricks, "Smoky" was eager to please and quick to learn.

From an article in a friend's April 1944 copy of National Geographic, Bill soon learned that Smoky was a Yorkshire Terrier. (The mystery of how a pure bred Yorkie become a stray in New Guinea is answered near the end of the book.)

The little Yorkie thrived on mess hall food and military rations like canned "Australian Bully Beef". Daily baths in Bill's combat helmet washed the salt water from her hair and protected Smoky from sand fleas and infectious diseases carried by ticks and other insects in the tropical South Pacific islands.

For 18 months, Smoky served with the 5th Air Force, 26th Photo Recon Squadron. She was awarded "Best Mascot in the South Pacific" by Yank Down Under Magazine. Along with Bill, Smoky flew 12 combat air/sea rescue and photo recon missions. The pair survived typhoons and kamikaze attacks. During those 18 months Bill and Smoky also began their career in show business by entertaining wounded troops in military hospitals, perfecting and expanding their act as Smoky mastered new tricks.

Smoky was more than an award winning mascot and entertainer. She became a war dog and a true heroine at a Luzon airfield when she pulled a string, attached to vital phone wires, through a 70 foot long - 8 inch diameter pipe. With her master calling her from the opposite end of the pipe, Smoky completed her journey beneath the airfield taxi strip in two minutes. Without Smoky, it would have taken the troops at least 3 days to dig up, lay wires and replace the strip, putting 40 US fighter and recon planes in peril of destruction by enemy bombings.

After the war, Bill and Smoky enjoyed a successful show business career that included weekly performances on live TV.

This wonderful, heartwarming, true story about a tiny canine war hero, is told as only the amazing soldier who trained and loved her could. After the story, at the end of the book, in "Training The Small Dog", Bill shares his expertise with advice on teaching basic commands and tricks, plus information about the Yorkshire Terrier breed. The photos in this book are incredible!!!!

Dog lovers will love Yorkie Doodle Dandy! WW II battle history makes this a great book for history buffs and fans of wartime adventure too.

Yorkie Doodle Dandy is available, online, at Amazon.com

See pictures and read more about the book and the author at - SmokyWarDog.com

Also, see the Yorkie Doodle Dandy Blog