Marley & Me
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| Author | John Grogan |
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| Country | USA |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Non-fiction |
| Publisher | HarperCollins |
| Released | October 18, 2005 |
| Media type | Print (hardcover), audio, e-book |
| Pages | 304 |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-06-081708-9 |
Marley & Me is a The New York Times best seller autobiographical book by the journalist John Grogan. It portrays his and his family's life during the thirteen years that they lived with their Labrador Retriever, Marley, and the relationships and lessons from this period.
Marley himself is portrayed, in line with his American Labrador lineage, as a highly strung, boisterous, and somewhat uncontrolled dog. He is strong, powerful, endlessly hungry and eager to be active, often destructive of their property (completely without malice) or otherwise embarrasses them, and routinely fails to "get the idea" of what humans expect of him. At one point the comment is made, perhaps partly in jest, that mental illness might be a plausible explanation for his behavior. However his acts and behaviors are forgiven since it is clear that he has a heart of gold and is merely living within his nature.
The strong contrast between the problems and tensions caused by his neuroses and behavior, and the undying devotion, love and trust shown towards the human family as they themselves have children and grow up to accept him for what he is, and their grief when he finally dies in old age, form the backdrop for the biographical material of the story.
Contents |
[edit] Tag lines
Tag lines include:
- "Life and love with the world's worst dog." [1]
- "Is it possible for humans to discover the key to happiness through a larger than life, bad-boy dog?" [2]
[edit] Plot
The heartwarming story of a family in the making and the wondrously neurotic dog who taught them what really matters in life.
John and his wife Jenny were newly married. They both were animal lovers, and decided to buy a dog for their home, prior to having children. The dog they acquired as a puppy rapidly grew into a strong adult, but despite their efforts at dog training, he mostly did not accept the authority and directions of his owners. At times Marley used his great strength and tendency to chew through doors, strongly built dog crates, and even basement walls and doors, especially when impelled by his lifelong phobia of thunderstorms. At other times he dragged people and furniture around when he wished to socialize with other dogs or explore scents.
Marley stayed with his family as they moved from their original home to Boca Raton and up to Pennsylvania, and as they had their three children. On several occasions he showed deep empathy and a more serious side, comforting his mistress after a miscarriage, and protecting the victim and his owner when a neighbor was assaulted. Nearly rehoused during postpartum depression, he was allowed to stay and became a beloved companion of the children as they grew.
Eventually, Marley was unavoidably put to sleep following a recurrence of bloat (a nearly fatal condition requiring major surgery with unpredictable results) at age 13, when he was already seriously weakened from old age. He was deeply mourned by the entire family, especially by the author and his wife, who saw in him a role model and mentor of unconditional love, devotion, and the art of enjoying and living life to the full. In the epilogue, the author describes how the following summer, his wife finds by chance an advert for a dog that "could have been his identical twin" in both looks and high energy behavior, and ends the book on a hanging note as the couple reflect on the gap in their lives and decide to go and see the new possible addition to their home.
[edit] Author's description
The author's description of Marley reads in part:
- "Marley quickly grew into a barreling, 97-pound steamroller of a Labrador Retriever, a dog like no other. He crashed through screen doors, gouged into drywall, flung drool on guests, stole women's undergarments, and ate nearly everything he could get his mouth around, including couches and fine jewelry. Obedience school did little good -- Marley was expelled his first time through. Marley even seemed impervious to tranquilizers the veterinarian prescribed for him with the admonishment, "Don't hesitate to use these."
- "And yet, his heart was pure. Just as Marley joyfully refused any limits on his behavior, his love and loyalty were boundless, too. He shared the couple's joy at first pregnancy, and their heartbreak over miscarriage. He was there when babies finally arrived and when the screams of a 17-year-old stabbing victim pierced the night. Marley played a role in shutting down a public beach and managed to land a role in a feature-length movie (though it went straight to video), always winning hearts as he made a mess of things. Through it all, he remained steadfast, a model of devotion, even when his family was at wits' end. Unconditional love, they would learn, comes in many forms."
[edit] Adaptions
Marley & Me is being rewritten into two different books. One being for younger readers who would enjoy reading about Marley's story, minus the sexual content in the original book. The book is called Marley: A Dog Like No Other.
The 2nd book is a picture book for readers learning to read in lower grade levels called Bad Dog, Marley!
[edit] Narrative style
The story is told in the first person, in an entertaining and engaging style that does not minimize the difficulties of living with Marley, but places them in a broader context looking back, where they can be seen as meaningful. It includes many amusing anecdotes and warm memories that have made it a very popular book for other animal lovers, who wrote to the author that Marley reminded them of dogs they loved, and had lived with, too.
[edit] Trivia
- Marley was named by his owners after singer Bob Marley, described as being "always in the background" in the South Florida culture of the time.[3]
- Marley was given a bit part, including in credits, in the film The Last Home Run.
- The eulogy written by the author in his newspaper following the death of their dog, is described as receiving more responses than any other column he had written in his professional life up until that point. [4]
- A film based on the book is in the works supposedly directed by Shawn Levy (The Pink Panther, Night at the Museum).
- The Grogan's new dog, Gracie, was featured on the show Dog Whisperer in the episode 'Bella & Big Boy, and Gracie'. She had been refusing to come into the house and had eaten a pet chicken.
[edit] See also
[edit] External links
- Official Site
- Starlight Fading review of Marley & Me by Ashley Jackson
- Video clip of the movie 'The Last Home Run' showing scenes in which Marley had a role hosted on YouTube.com
- Information about the movie 'The Last Home Run' - note Marley the Dog in credits from imdb.com
[edit] References
- ^ Cover of hardback edition
- ^ Back cover of hardback edition
- ^ "Marley & Me" ch.2 p.12-13
- ^ "Marley & Me" ch.29 p.281-282: A recorded warning I had never heard before. "Your mailbox is full" ... I logged onto my computer and opened my email. Same story. ... This morning there were hundreds, far more than anything I had received before.
