I love to read. And by that, I meant I am a real true-blue bookworm who can’t live without books. Not just any book, mind you. Books that piqued my interest, books that makes me laugh and yes, even books that make me cry. And no, I don’t mean Dr Mahathir’s autobiography. Heck, I HATE non-fiction. Okay, so, hate is a very strong word by still…my real life is as real as it’s gonna get so I’ll be damned if I’m gonna waste some of my relaxation time reading about real life accounts of some other person. It is not relaxing to read about some old fogger developing piles or shingles or whatever it is they develop.
But I digress.
Let’s talk about Marley & Me – The Book. Did I hear a gasp? Yes, my dear non-bookworm people. Marley & Me is a book first and foremost. And frankly, I’ve not seen the movie. I think it would have spoilt my enjoyment of the book. The fabulous, fabulous book. And did I mention that I hate non-fiction? Well, Marley & Me made me change my mind. It is probably the first ever non-fiction sorta autobiographical book that I loved. Not that I went out to buy it, mind you. It was a Christmas present.
So, what’s the book about?
It is exactly about the Marley the dog and his owners, John and Jenny (and later, their three children). That’s in a nutshell. Now, lets dissect it a bit, since this is a book review and all (and no, I am not being paid to do the book review).
The whole premise of the book is mostly based on John’s perspective and his yuppie life with his wife Jenny. Right before they think of starting a family, they decided to get a puppy. After all, everyone knows, having a pet is great training for parents wannabes before they become actual parents. Right? Wrong.
Marley proved to be more difficult than having babies. He was probably the worst dog ever. He slobbered everywhere. He destroyed everything and has this mortal fear of thunder, which means he goes into a violent frenzy at a hint of thunder. That’s not bad enough, he has this uncontrollable energy which means he jumped, run, bounded and leap all the time every where and anywhere and was practically untrainable. Yeah, he got kicked out of dog obedience school, so you can imagine how bad he was.
John Grogan went into quite a lot of details about Marley’s many misadventures and then interspersed it with details of his life with Jenny and their attempt at having children. Right from the start, the book is gripping as John has a style that draws his readers in with his conversational tone and the real-as-life feelings he poured into it.
The most heartwarming part about the whole book is how John and Jenny took every bad behaviour, every misadventure, every damage Marley caused in their stride. Even when Jenny was struggling with postpartum issues and had wanted John to get rid of Marley, the dog was never cast out or left at the pound. Instead, John furtively hid the dog until Jenny recovered from her postpartum blues.
What really touched me about this book is that this couple and their children loved Marley as one of their family, slobber and all. This is so unlike many Malaysian pet owners who wouldn’t even think twice about abandoning their pet dog as soon as the thought ‘it is inconvenient to have a dog’ crossed their mind.
And that is the BIG difference. For the Grogans, Marley is a family member. But for many pet owners here, dogs are merely pets and an amusing ‘live’ toy and nothing else. If a pet dog die, they happily dispose of it and go out and get another one. However, for the Grogans, having Marley around for 12 years is like having a close family member with them.
As with any real life book, of course, this ended on a not-so-happy note. What can you expect when a dog reach 12 years? Marley left for doggie heaven but the poignant moments of Marley’s departure was so well-written and pregnant with emotion, it had me in tears. It made me want to hug my dog and made him promise that he won’t go to doggie heaven just yet.
My verdict: Marley & Me is a must-read especially for dog lovers or any animal lover. It is not merely about a dog but a family and a dog’s undying devotion to each other that will not fail to touch every single animal lover who reads this. Just remember to read it with a box of tissues next to you.
Rating: 9/10 (definitely worth the stolen time spent curled up on a couch reading it)
A sad ending? Gosh, I wonder if the movie is the same as the book. Must warn my friend not to watch the movie then as the dog dies in the end!!
foongpcs last blog post..When Lightning Strikes!
My favourite book is the Kama Sutra. I especially love the illustrated edition with step by step pictures. They even have a video/DVD version of the Kama Sutra.
Before everyone rush to call me a dirty old man, these sort of books if properly and tastefully done forms part of the sex education process.
Sex is much more than the standard missionary position and the wham bang thank you maam thing. It adds spice in your life and an important part of a successful & happy relationship.
foongpc: I don’t know if the movie has a sad ending or not…sometimes movie is not the same as the book
Engineer: But you ARE a dirty old man!