With unfailing thoughtfulness, compassion and a firm grasp of scientific fact, the daughter of James and sister of Christopher explores how a popular breed of dog became the most demonized and supposedly the most dangerous of dogs – and what role humans have played in the transformation. When Bronwen Dickey brought her new dog home, she saw no traces of the infamous viciousness in her affectionate, timid pit bull. Which made her wonder: How had the breed – beloved by Teddy Roosevelt, Helen Keller, and Hollywood’s “Little Rascals” – come to be known as a brutal fighter? Her search for answers takes her from 19^th century New York City dogfighting pits to early 20^th century movie sets, from the battlefields of Gettysburg and the Marne, to desolate urban neighborhoods, culminating in a clear-eyed portrait of this extraordinary breed and an insightful view of Americans’ relationship with their dogs