Healthy Love Bites

Marley & Me

Recently, my girlfriend a.k.a Lilian borrowed me a book she recently purchased during a Book Fest.

The book had around 290+ pages of non-fiction issues but since the last Harry Potter book (HP & The Deathly Hallows), I don’t think I even looked into any storybook.So, the sound of 290 pages sounds extraordinarily long. The thought of reading it made me quite reluctant. It sure was.

The book which is based on a true life story of the author himself, Mr. John Grogan and his family with his beloved but notorious dog named Marley. Thus, the book was named Marley & Me. The tagline says it all, ‘Life and Love with the World’s Worst Dog‘.

Here’s an excerpt of the book, I would like to share with you:

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The litter consisted of five females, all but one of which already had deposits on them, and four males. Lori was asking $400 for the remaining female and $375 for the males. One of the males seemed particularly smitten with us. He was the goofiest of the group and charged into us, somersaulting into our laps and clawing his way up our shirts to lick our faces. He gnawed on our fingers with surprisingly sharp baby teeth and stomped clumsy circles around us on giant tawny paws that were way out of proportion to the rest of his body. “That one there you can have for three-fifty,” the owner said.

Jenny is a rabid bargain hunter who has been known to drag home all sorts of things we neither want nor need simply because they were priced too attractively to pass up. “I know you don’t golf,” she said to me one day as she pulled a set of used clubs out of the car. “But you wouldn’t believe the deal I got on these.” Now I saw her eyes brighten. “Aw, honey,” she cooed. “The little guy’s on clearance!”

I had to admit he was pretty darn adorable. Frisky, too. Before I realized what he was up to, the rascal had half my watchband chewed off.

“We have to do the scare test,” I said. Many times before I had recounted for Jenny the story of picking out Saint Shaun when I was a boy, and my father teaching me to make a sudden move or loud noise to separate the timid from the self-assured. Sitting in this heap of pups, she gave me that roll of the eyes that she reserved for odd Grogan-family behavior. “Seriously,” I said. “It works.”

I stood up, turned away from the puppies, then swung quickly back around, taking a sudden, exaggerated step toward them. I stomped my foot and barked out, “Hey!” None seemed too concerned by this stranger’s contortions. But only one plunged forward to meet the assault head-on. It was Clearance Dog. He plowed full steam into me, throwing a cross-body block across my ankles and pouncing at my shoelaces as though convinced they were dangerous enemies that needed to be destroyed.

“I think it’s fate,” Jenny said.

~~~

That was just the beginning of it, and I really got hooked onto it and attached to the characters in that story. The way John wrote made me constantly portraying myself as his character.

He totally had me with some of the comical moments and it’s grieving moment. I cannot believe it but tears were flooding my eyes at one part of the book, would not want to spoil it for you? Would I?

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It kept my dreams of owning a Golden Retriever when I’m older and able to support one. Just imagining all the fun moments would make me beam.

The rating score I would give this book is 8/10. And if you are into books, don’t miss this out.

If you are not into books, not to worry as Marley & Me will be hitting the cinema screens in December or January! A Christmas movie played by Owen Wilson and lovely Jennifer Aniston.