Well, well, well. Look who decided to join Jackie and Rachel on the right side of 30! That would be Theo, our (actual, this time) birthday boy-producer. In honor of this special day, Rachel decided to give him the greatest gift of all: an idea for a birthday episode that he didn't have to come up with himself. We discuss the children's book My Dog Talks by Gail Herman, an age-inappropriate classic that entered Theo's young life through a series of whimsical events, and critically compare it with another heavy hitter from the canine communication canon: Martha Speaks by Susan Meddaugh. When these two goliaths of literature enter the arena, can both emerge unscathed? Or will this clash of titans end in a reckoning - a toppling of the old guard, a new idol's light shining atop the altar - that will rock Theo's childhood memories to their core? Will Jackie, new to this madness, be able to cope with the soul-crushing implications of bestowing family pets with the blessing, the curse, of language? Of the birth - and the cruel, unfeeling obliteration - of the very Self inherent therein? Only one way to find out! Listen and enjoy, and join our Patreon at patreon.com/firethecanon for the full episode.
