Books like Old Dogs — picked by fans

When photographer Lori Fusaro and I were traveling around the country working on our book together, we made a point of hightailing it to Maine so we could visit the idyllic retirement oasis created by author David Rosenfelt and his wife Debbie Myers for themselves and more than 20 large, geriatric rescue dogs. Rosenfelt’s book Dogtripping chronicles the couple’s cross-country retirement move from California to Maine with all those aging dogs in three RVs with the help of volunteers who were fans of Rosenfelt’s mystery novels. It’s a HOOT! You can watch a Facebook Live video of Rosenfelt discussing his Dogtripping book with me here at an event sponsored by The Grey Muzzle Organization, one of my favorite charities that helps senior dogs in need.

I’ve been a fan of Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist and author Dave Barry for decades, and his Lessons From Lucy book surprised me — not because it’s hilarious (of course it is!), but because it’s so profoundly moving. I haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since I read it. Here’s what inspired the book: When Barry turned 70, he reflected on how unhappy he was about aging — in stark contrast with his blissed-out senior dog, Lucy. Barry noticed that Lucy was always ready for fun new adventures, eager to make new friends, and able to live in the moment. In this gem of a book, Barry explores the realities of the human condition and zeroes in on the real keys to contentment in life, all thanks to the love of a dog. 

I wrote the foreword for Sophie...Best Friends are Forever because I believe in its message about the healing power of therapy dogs. In this book, Ted Slupik shares the story of his rough-coated collie Sophie, a loyal friend who eagerly visited patients in hospitals and nursing homes with him each week for more than 12 years. Sophie’s uncanny ability to connect with and comfort people at dark or challenging moments is sure to move you, as will Sophie’s greatest lesson: that every day is a gift. Here’s a happy and important side note: All net proceeds from sales of this book go to Lizzy’s Fund, another one of my favorite charities that helps senior dogs in need.

This National Geographic collection of photos and stories of sweet senior dogs is sure to make you swoon. Photographer Jane Sobel Klonsky loves animals and people, and her book is a celebration of the human-animal bond and all the endearing traits that make senior dogs so special. Unconditional is an excellent gift book for dog lovers. It’s also fun to follow Project Unconditional on Facebook and Instagram.

Though easy to mock for their repetitive plots and outdated societal attitudes, children of all ages devoured Enid Blyton’s mystery stories ravenously, and I was no exception. Blyton was an absurdly prolific writer, and it’s tough to pick a favourite from her expansive catalogue, but if you twisted my arm, I’d have to go with 1945’s The Mystery of the Secret Room. I still remember my excitement as I followed the five intrepid “find-outers” (and dog!) on their quest to uncover the mystery behind a fully furnished room in a supposedly abandoned house, all the while outsmarting the dim-witted local policeman, Mr. Goon. An unusual choice, perhaps, but this book, and indeed Blyton’s entire oeuvre, were a formative influence on me and sparked a lifelong love of amateur detectives.

Unlike so many books where the point of view character is a dog, Haig has really thought his way into the dog. His creation, Prince, is not a counterfeit, a man in a dog suit, as it were, but a real dog. Haig’s empathic projection of how a dog might see things and interpret events is both charming and very believable. Further, Prince is a truly relatable character, without being ‘cute’. His well-meaning, doomed struggle to make sense of things he cannot understand, and to take control of a bad situation and save his family, is the very essence of tragedy; he is prevented by his very nature from achieving what he so desperately desires. 

The ending will break your heart, but it’s a fantastic read that will leave you feeling richer for having read it.

This is a briliant and unusual book by the writer of the highly successful Captain Correlli’s Mandolin.

It’s the true story of a wonderfully independent Red Kelpie, who hitches rides all over Western Australia, moving in with people for a while then moving on. He becomes a legend in the area, and there is a statue of him in his hometown.

It’s a timeless piece of modern folklore and a hymn to the wandering spirit of this extraordinary little dog, captured beautifully by de Bernieres.

Flush is an experimental novella by Virginia Woolf that relays the biography of Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s beloved cocker spaniel.

Told from the titular Flush’s point of view, Woolf mixes imagination with research, drawing largely from Browning’s own poems about the dog for inspiration, as she portrays the pup’s inner thoughts as he goes from a carefree country puppy to the city dog of a reclusive poetess, and back to the country as the Brownings marry and flee London for the Italian countryside.

This is a story fraught with dangers and full of triumphs and sweet moments that will warm the hearts of any dog lover.

The Big Book of Tricks is big, with 116 tricks and activities in all. (Eat your heart out Kyra!) Oodles of gorgeous, sequential photographs and very clear, straightforward, step-by-step instructions. The canine models include Larry’s Spider and Flashy Ferrari’s (Perondi) Stunt Dogs and the range of tricks is indeed eclectic, but well organized, comprising beginner, intermediate, movie, performance, dancing, stunts, and sports, including Head Balance and Butt Balance (brilliant for building rock-solid Stays), Hop Up and Hugs of various sorts, Crawl Weave, which looks easy for dogs but a challenging workout for the trainer, and Wipe Your Paws, a must-teach for muddy Labradors.

I’ve known Larry since he wrote his first dog book and we’ve shared a few bottles of Côtes du Rhône, and I know Chris by reputation… and my word what a truly amazing reputation… the Stunt Dogs perform over 1,000 shows a year. All his dogs… show more.

Adventure and magic (so much magic!!) go hand in hand in this quirky story about a self-named thief, Quicksilver, whose quests lead her toward the truth of the Star Lands’ witches and the powerful Wolf King. Faithfully, her dog travels at her side, which is one reason I love this story so much. Animal companions make adventuring all the more fun!