THE MAN WHO DIDN'T LIKE ANIMALS by Deborah Underwood

by Kristi Mahoney

​The Man Who Didn’t Like Animals (Clarion Books, 2024), by author Deborah Underwood and illustrator LeUyen Pham is a book celebrating the joy of embracing new perspectives.
​
The story is about a man who lived in his tidy apartment and didn’t like animals. It’s not until animals started appearing that he discovered that he shared their interests …sleeping …going for walks… eating dinner precisely at 6pm. Maybe the animals could stay. In fact, maybe he’d welcome MORE of them! But what happens when the animals become too much for his apartment? Let’s just say…history is made. 

---

​As a HUGE animal lover, I was skeptical of the title. I would have bet the farm that I wouldn’t like a book where the entire premise centers around a man not liking animals. Yet, in the spirit of embracing new perspectives, and beckoned by that incredible cover, I dove in. I have been singing this book’s praises ever since. It’s beautifully written and has an amazing hook, frame-worthy art, and a tear-inducing ending packed with heart. This is a story of a mind changed – not only for the main character but, also, for me.

On Writing: 
According to a blog post by author Deborah Underwood, she didn’t set out to write Old MacDonald’s backstory. Deborah admitted that she had been playing around with the idea that people make generalizations about groups and how these generalizations can fall out the window after actually getting to know a member of that group. Like many writers know, when we have an idea that keeps swimming around in our head, we just have to dive in and trust it will take us somewhere. In a pro “pantser” move, Deborah did just this and kept writing. She admitted she had no idea what she was going to do with this guy who suddenly had a home full of animals. But that’s when the epiphany moment arrived: He becomes Old MacDonald! It’s brilliant. It’s relatable. And it may never had happened if Underwood hadn’t trusted the process. 

Use, The Man Who Didn’t Like Animals, as an inspirational mentor text for trusting your process and continuing to work on a manuscript whose ending, or middle, has you momentarily stumped.

---

To learn more about author Deborah Underwood visit her here or here. 
​To learn more about illustrator LeUyen Pham visit here.