There is a lot more to rescue than most of us will ever realize. Many people own animals, without really thinking about the morals and ethics involved in pet ownership, buying a pure bred or picking up a dog at a shelter, usually without putting too much thought into it or without thinking about their pets’ backstories. Upon adopting his first family dog as a rescue, after long being against pet ownership, author and writer Peter Zheutlin gets curious and decides to follow the same path their 2-3-year-old rescue Lab mix, Albie, took to get to their family and his second chance at life. He learns more than he bargained for, completing changing his outlook on life and growing as a person, as he embarks on a journey that includes traveling from Texas to Pennsylvania, in a truck with 40-60 dogs.

This thoughtfully written book explores the joys, heartaches, and the desperate reality of rescue. It also poses the question: Why is animal rescue even more imperative within the Southern States? Well written and clear cut, the author tells his story and his research. He does jump around a bit in time and admits in the afterword that he streamlined some of the events so that they would make more sense to readers. This book does a good job of taking the reader on the same gut wrenching but honest journey the author takes, sometimes shocking the reader with details of what the other finds, other times, warming the readers’ heart with success stories. As you fall for these animals, you will also bleed for them, hearing overwhelming statistics about animal cruelty, high kill facilities, and the realities of animal rescue. If you have ever been interested in nonfiction, animals, animal rights, overpopulation, or second chances, Rescue Road is the book for you.