Marley & Me: Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog

written by John Grogan

This is a funny, sweet, poignant book. One that I devoured in just under two days -- which is a real feat, I assure you, considering how our willy-nilly summer schedule is busting at the seams with kids' activities, barbecues, beach outings, work commitments, houseguests, and of course everything that goes into doting on our own canine prince, Buster.

The book made me laugh and cry, sometimes simultaneously. This is, I think, because about a year ago I became a Dog Person. It's not that I didn't like dogs before that -- in fact, as a kid growing up in rural Dexter, I almost always had one of our family dogs by my side. Dogs occupy a well-deserved place in my long list of happy childhood memories.

But until July 2005 I had never had a dog of my own, as an adult. Never had a dog that depended on me and me alone for safety, food, shelter, and love. So it was with some serious deliberation that Jay and the kids and I added Buster to our family after studying his "please adopt me" posting on www.petfinder.org. We haven't looked back since. We are smitten with him, all of us.

So I know where John Grogan's coming from when he says, "A dog has no use for fancy cars or big homes or designer clothes. Status symbols mean nothing to him. A waterlogged stick will do just fine. A dog judges people ... by who they are inside. A dog doesn't care if you're rich or poor, educated or illiterate, clever or dull. Give him your heart and he will give you his... Sometimes it took a dog with bad breath, worse manners, and pure intentions to help us see."

Grogan really tells two stories in this book. One story is of a hilarious, crazy, misbehaved hundred-pound retriever and how he turns the life of his master into an unpredictable, embarrassing, expensive, messy labor of love. The other story is how man's best friend captures the heart of his master and teaches him a thing or two in the process.

Really cool elements:

• Naughty dogs like Marley are pretty funny all on their own. (Especially when they're not yours!) John Grogan's wonderful, easy style and storytelling ability make them even funnier. You will laugh out loud at some of the stories in this book. And if you've ever owned a naughty dog yourself, you will see yourself in many of these stories. You might even find that you too are part of what Grogan calls the "Bad Dog Club."
• Any pet owner knows that one of the most difficult parts of having a pet is coping with the eventual death of an animal that was a special and important part of life. The end of the book describes in tender detail -- with just enough levity to keep it from getting too depressing -- how the Grogan family worked through Marley's aging and death. It's really a pretty beautiful account of how a family deals with loss.
• Grogan gives ode to Marley's life by describing how he "was a central player in some of the happiest chapters in our lives... chapters of young love and new beginnings, of budding careers and tiny babies. Of heady successes and crushing disappointments, of discovery and freedom and self-realization. He came into our lives just as we were trying to figure out what they would become." I love how the story of Marley was inseparable from the story of this man's life: his marriage, his children, his work, his friendships. Dogs are like that. Dogs are just ... cool.

Not-so-cool elements:

• Being a Dog Person, I really can't think of anything in the book to complain about. Except for the fact that the story might be lost on Non-Dog People. So if you're not into dogs, you might want to just skim. I can see a Cat Person trying to get through this book and thinking, "Please. Do we really need to know about every couch-eating incident? Every embarrassing moment in the dog obedience class? Every instance of finding some bizarre foreign object in the piles that Marley deposited in the back yard?" If you're not into dogs, the book might feel a little like listening to some over-involved parent prattling on about their wonderful children, when anyone with eyes can see that the kids are little demons who would be better off at reform school.