Maia Madden

Reviews

Treat Your Man Like A Dog… And Live Happily Ever After

Great relationship advice for those of us who love dogs!!  ~ C. Alexandra Edwards

I could swear the author of this book quotes me in this relationship primer that points out how patient and loving we are with our dogs and not so much with the men in our lives. Yes, I admit I am guilty of heaping unconditional love on my dog and often neglecting my husband!!! If we all just followed Maia Madden’s gently delivered advice to treat our men more like our dogs, we would all be happier. As she says…”If you spread joy instead of anger, your man will love you more than your dog does!” Who could resist that. I love this book and have been giving it to all my friends. It makes the BEST gift for guys even if they aren’t dog lovers. My daughter’s boyfriend’s copy is ‘dog-eared’!!! Its the perfect length and the pictures are irresistible!!!

As an Avid Dog Lover!! ~ By Melinda A. Hodges

As an avid dog lover, Maia asked me to read her first draft. I loved it from the start and thought that Maia was on to something big. After careful editing and additions, including the quiz, Do you love your Man Enough, Maia has come up with a fast reading, no nonsense book that gets right to the point. Although I took the quiz an passed, I did what was suggested and read the book again. Sometimes it takes only a 1-2 degree change in a relationship to make all the difference in reaching our hearts destination. Changes that are not heady or complicated and that really begin with change within ourselves, towards ourselves as women. While we can only change ourselves, this can be a catalyst for positive growth within a relationship.

This book is filled with nuggets of wisdom. My two favorite chapters are “Talk is Overated” and “Above all else be KIND.” Most women need communication through conversation to feel connected to their man in the same way a man needs sex to feel connected to his woman; however, we women might find that we sabotage this need. Often women complain that their significant other is talking less and less. Maia has practical advice for this dilemma. Above all else Be Kind, is significant and crucial in this ever increasingly rude, self centered and cynical world. It reminds me of a Proverb that speaks of the qualities of a Woman of Virtue…..”the teaching of kindness is on her lips.”

Of all the books I have read on relationships and love, this one is different from the rest. It is truly the voice of wisdom spoken with a voice of humor that reaches our core as women who love and adore our animals. While we all know how some cultures treat their dogs, we American women typically lavish attention and affection on our dogs. Maia has practical advice for tapping into that relationship with our most trusted canine friends that will make the men in our lives feel like they are indeed, as Kit Landis wrote in his reveiw, the Top DOG.

While the advice from TREAT YOUR MAN LIKE A DOG AND LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER will not fix all relationship problems, it is certainly going to make a good relationship even better and a bad relationship sit up and take notice. This book is top on my list for a short read that reaches down to the soul when your soul is searching.

Men: Give it it the woman in your life and watch the difference! ~ by Rupert M. Hart

When every woman my age (46) is divorced, it’s clear that something is wrong and this book has some useful things to say. The author gently chides women (without being overbearing or didactic) to take more responsibility for changing the way they interact with their man in order to get the improve the relationship to where they would like it to be. Echoing “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus”, this compact tome addresses key gender differences and suggests relationship solutions, using the irony of how women treat their dogs better than their men, and what we can learn from that, in a delightful conversational tone.

Once you get past the counterintuitive title – the author is actually complimentary when she urges her sex to treat her man like a dog since woman often treat their dogs better than their men – there are many useful nuggets of wisdom expressed in a readable and ironic manner. Once you get it, the title is quite clever, and encourages women to read the book!

Here are just three of the many take-aways I got from the book that I would like my female friends to really take in.

Don’t try to change us. (Unless we specifically ask for help). Cliche, perhaps. It is nice to hear a woman author say it, but it is true. In the same way that women choose their dogs – they don’t expect St Bernards to be Jack Russells – you can’t expect your man to change that much.

Use more touch and compliments. Women do seem to have a habit of selectively doling out affection rather than the effusive and open manner in whch they pet their dogs. When Oscar de la Renta, the fashion designer, said that if he came back after death he would like to be his wife’s dog because she got more affection that he did, there is something important to be learned here.

Communicate more directly. We men really are simple creatures, rather like dogs in fact in many ways. If you don’t say it, ladies, we don’t know it. And you need to take responsibility for saying it simply enough that we get it. (Of course, diplomacy would be useful, too). Thanking us for flowers and gently telling us that you hate carnations because they remind you of funerals and would prefer lilacs is better than getting angry at receiving carnations for Valentine’s Day and then never letting us forget it every February 14th. And if you don’t tell us, how are we ever to know that you have been finding our bedroom antics boring and repetitive (this doesn’t apply to me, of course!)? Assuming we are mind-readers, or will pick up on your passive-aggressiveness or silence, is the source of much miscommunication.

There is much, much more in this book. Easy to read and learn from. Using the dog analogy turns out to be quite a useful way of thinking about relationships. Recommended.

Learn new tricks! ~ M. Cathryn Palmer

Fun book to read! Dog owner or not, read this book. Puts things back into perspective. It has some valuable lessons and reminders of what really matters in a relationship.

This book is Man’s Best Friend! ~ By Ms Roxanne “LindaRoxanne”

Finally! A very smart & wise dog-loving woman writes down in plain English what women … and men … need to know about having a happy relationship! Maia Madden is both whimsical and profound at the same time, offering sage advice to women as to how to take the love and “in the moment” affection she whole heartedly shares with her beloved pet, and spread it around her entire home! Men will LOVE this book and should give it to their wives, girlfriends, sisters, aunts, mothers and grandmothers! It is a well written story that serves both women and men, showing how to create happiness with your mate in the here and now. Great job!

Throw him a bone……~ By A. Hultzen

This brilliant author clearly understands how easy it is for women to become enraptured by their adorable canine companion, often at the expense of their human one. It is so valuable to “witness” the experience through the eyes of your significant other and Maia Madden really helped to bring that to my attention.

Great Game Plan For Men ~ By Kit A. Landis

Hey Guys… If your wife or girlfriend heaps loads of attention and affection on the family dog and you sometimes feel like you’re getting left in the dust, this little jewel is definitely for you. Make a gift of this book to her, and you could be on your way to relationship nirvana! I’ve finally been promoted to top dog. Woof! Woof!