Lucy and Max: A mostly true story about the amazing friendship between a wild goose and a ’’ferocious’’ guard dog in Taghkanic, New Yo

Artist, author, and nature-lover Dan Udell cuts through the doom and gloom of the news today with a true story about an unlikely relationship that will delight fans of animal friendships and tug at even the most cynical heartstrings.

Told from the perspective of Lucy, a wounded Canada goose unable to keep up with the rest of her flock, this story chronicles a two-year time period as she trades in flying for walking and finds companionship in a furry, ferocious, and four-legged creature.

Though Max is a guard dog trained to protect his property, Lucy pushes through his initial protests to her presence and wins him over so that the two animals become inseparable.

But as the months pass and Lucy and Max's friendship grows, so does Lucy's strength. Her wing heals and soon she can fly with her flock once more, joining the daily trips from Bell's pond to Skoda's cornfield.

Will Lucy follow the primal call to migrate south-or will her loyalty to Max keep her grounded for another season?

With a keen eye and deft touch, Udell tells this lovely story, which he personally observed in Taghkanic, New York, near the historic city of Hudson, New York.

Dan Udell is a modern-day Renaissance man, with interests spanning the worlds of science, technology, writing, music, photography, and videography. A lover of nature, Udell grew up in Westchester, New York when ancient farms still covered the landscape.

Udell graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York, with degrees in physics and mathematics. He combined these skills with his passion for writing and worked at IBM as a science and technology writer for many years. As IBM’s chief spokesperson Udell translated the inner workings of IBM computers on space shuttles to the press and created many worldwide announcements and photo and video landmarks.

Udell teamed up with his wife, Mary, to curate art exhibits for her Sound Shore gallery. His own work has been featured in many one-person and group shows and his photographs are represented in the collections of RPI, MIT, PepsiCo, GE, Merrill Lynch, then-MCI, Benerofe Properties, and other corporations and private holdings. They both have been reading mentors for middle school students at Hudson, New York, for several years.