• March 13, 2006
• Vol. 65
• No. 10

Bad Dog Makes Good Read

How Did a Naughty Labrador Retriever Land His Owner Atop Bestseller Lists? Author John Grogan Ponders the Mania Over Marley & Me

Tell tales about how cute your kids are and people stifle yawns. But as John Grogan has discovered, there's endless interest in the shenanigans of a really bad dog. Published in October, Grogan's memoir about a Lab whose transgressions ran from nonstop slobbering to eating cupboard doors has 1.1 million copies in print and was just snapped up by Hollywood. Now crafting a kids' version, Grogan, 48, who lives in Emmaus, Pa., with his wife, three kids and Marley's successor, an 18-month-old Lab named Gracie, shared his thoughts.

Why do readers love this memoir?

I think it's because everybody has a bad-dog story. I've gotten a lot of e-mails saying, 'My dog loved your book,' and the photo shows the book shredded and a dog just sitting there.

Is there a bigger message in Marley?

Definitely a theme of redemption—that even bad dogs can help shape a family in a positive way.

What do people say at readings?

You wouldn't believe the tough guys—canine officers, firefighters—who admit that they cried [when Marley, 13 and ailing, is euthanized]. I think I'm granting them permission to grieve.

What do your kids think of the phenomenon?

They're tickled that the big lug of a dog who could do nothing right in this life is becoming a household name.

Does Gracie, your new dog, do anything right?

She's the anti-Marley—she's so good she's almost boring.