by Anne Moore; illustrated by Lucy Knisley

Handheld Press, 25 pages, $12.03  

Are you a parent with a persistent child who begs for a dog, but you're not ready to commit? Then this book, aimed at young readers, may be for you and your kid.

Based on a true story, it introduces us to narrator Alex, an 8-year-old Chicago girl who dreams of the perfect dog. (Alex's mom is the author of this book.) When Alex was a baby, her family put up with Huck, a quintessential Cute Bad Dog with health problems and a loud bark. Since Huck passed away, everyone's a little jumpy about getting a new dog. Alex's mother dreams of a quiet dog. Alex's dad wants a dog who doesn't shed. Alex's brother Mason dreams of no dog at all.

But Alex will not be denied. While the drawings in this book, by the author's niece Lucy Knisley are simple and lovely, the road to getting a great dog is not. Adoption fairs and shelters and the Internet don't work out, thought the family does their best. Frustrated, Alex finally accepts Max, a tiny alligator, as a substitute. Max also proves a test of Alex's caretaking skills.

Two years pass. Finally, Alex and her family decide to visit a breeder of English Cocker Spaniels. After a thorough grilling by a responsible breeder, Alex's family is smitten by a small black male furball they name Cassady. Alex, by now a seasoned pet owner, doesn't just love Cassady to bits; she also trains him to stay, jump through hoops, and keep quiet. And Cassady loves Alex right back.

While this book has a happy ending - girl gets dog - along the way it illuminates a lot of the issues that come up when people considering adding a dog to the family. This book serves as a great teaching tool for parents, and a decent primer for kids interested in getting a dog. Plus, Cassady is Cute with a capital C. The playful illustrations by Knisley make this a fun book; the clear-eyed writing makes it a useful one. 

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Bow Tie Press, 208 pages, $19.95
 
Available on Amazon.com
 
June is Gay Pride Month, but this out-loud-and-proud book makes fun reading no matter what the time of year, or one's sexual orientation. The P.O.V. is certainly authentic: The author, a self-described "obsessive Show Tune Queen in therapy" and founder of the AIDS charity Cabaret For Life, Inc., lives with his partner and three dogs.
 
The theme of the book is treating your canine companion like the major fabulous, unordinary, extraordinary best friend he is. That's a message that may be appreciated even by us straight dog lovers. Case in point: Dr. Marty Becker, Good Morning America's excellent resident veterinarian, who calls this book "Authoritative and touching."
 
However, let it not be said that style isn't every bit as important as substance. Accordingly, the book's important message is delivered in a hardcover format that would look right at home on the swankest coffee table in the most beautifully-appointed decor, and it's lavishly illustrated with chic, full-color artwork by Jason O'Malley, whose work has been published in Vogue and Elle Decor.
 
Major fabulous. 

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Crown, 352 pages, $25
 
As you probably know, The Bark has been called "The New Yorker for dog lovers" by no less an authority than Time Magazine, and praised by The Washington Post for its "hip, literary" vibe. This is the magazine's second anthology, the first being the best-selling Dog is My Co-Pilot.
 
In this collection of humorous pieces, there's something to tickle every funny bone, from the brightly witty to the darkly comic. Fans of the late, great Spy Magazine will be glad to revisit Ann Hodgman's "No Wonder They Call Me a Bitch," which still made me laugh out loud 19 years after its first publication, yet mysteriously didn't make it into Spy's own vaunted anthology.
 
Also included are other people who write funny for a living: comic Margaret Cho and authors Merrill Markoe and Dave Barry. And sprinkled about are select strips by the mutt maven's favorite cartoonist, Patrick McDonnell, as well as "verbal cartoons," i.e. biscuit-size morsels of wisdom, called "Brevities" by Dan Liebert.
 
A couple of FetchDog friends make appearances too. Melissa Holbrook Pierson, the noted author and blogger, contributes an amusing essay that perfectly captures the heart-pounding feeling of having a dog in your care suddenly break free of his leash - only to have your heart pound to a different beat when the dog is collared by someone famous. And Michael J. Rosen co-authors, with Mark Allen Svede, the crack-up corporate spoof "How You Can Help Your Dog Enjoy a Visit to the Vet." 
 
The book comes in handsome hardback form, with a lovely cover painting by illustrator Mark Ulriksen. In all, you can't go wrong getting a few copies to stockpile as gifts for friends and loved ones who could use a little laugh. 

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by Melissa Sweet

Published by Houghton Mifflin Co.

If you've ever adopted an animal and discovered that he or she fit in just right, you've discovered the magic of pet adoption. It's time to share it with your children, and there's no better introduction to the topic than the colorful, lyrical story Tupelo Rides the Rails by author and illustrator Melissa Sweet.

Tupelo Rides the Rails is the story of Tupelo, a black and white dog who is yearning for a bit of adventure but also a place and a person to call his own. His yearnings take him on a trip that will enthrall kids listening in their parents' laps (this book is fun to read aloud) and those who can read to themselves as Tupelo's dog buddies find their homes, one by one.

I won't spoil the ending here, but I will tell you not to worry, this is a children's book. And the award-winning Sweet (a New York Times pick for her last book, Carmine, a Little More Red) wouldn't leave your children or Tupelo in desperate straits. I will tell you that along with a sweet lesson about dog rescue, there's a more concrete one to be learned about Sirius the Dog Star (one I never knew) in Tupelo's pages.

The story is wonderfully illustrated, with watercolors of Tupelo's gang of "Boneheads" as his dog gang calls themselves, a highlight.

Parents and grandparents who have to read the same book over and over -- and over -- can grow tired of the same tale. Tupelo looks like a keeper to me.

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by Kristi Porter
 
Fireside, 96 pages, $14.95
 
Who doesn't love a hand-knit sweater? The problem is finding the time and motivation to make one yourself. Happily, there are hand-made options you can buy at FetchDog. But if you've been feeling the urge to do it yourself, this book is just what you need to get jump-started.
 
Books about knitting for dogs tend to cater to petite breeds, overlooking the big-boned canine. Not this book, which features a Rottweiler among its models and offers a range of pattern sizes, plus helpful how-to instructions on custom-fitting items to any dog, big or small.
 
Particularly endearing are photographs of medium-to-large mixed-breeds proudly modeling hand-knit clothing designed and made expressly for them. These will appeal to the maverick mutt maven who prides herself on her dog's unique physique.
 
This book also proves that sweaters, coats, and ponchos aren't the only items you can whip up - and yarn isn't the only material to knit with. The author is, after all, the hugely creative designer and author known for her contributions to Knitty and TV's "Knitty Gritty." How about do-it-yourself rope toys made of Poly Utility Cord? Or "Disco Dog" legwarmers (seriously adorable, its directions helpfully divided by foreleg and hind leg), saddlebags, hats, dog-bed covers, and squeaky toys (a fine way to reuse what's left after your industrious dog has subjected some other toy to a squeak-ectomy)? Or a "New Age Flea Collar" that you fill with dried herbs known for their pest-repellent properties?
 
But my paws-down favorite is the chapter on "Feral Fair Isles." Talk about making a fashion statement! 

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by Jean M. Fogle

Howell Book House, 112 pages, $14.99

Available on Amazon.com

If your summer workload prevents you from high-tailing it to the nearest beach as often as you'd like, there could be no greater escape than this charming book of photographs captioned with quotable quotes.  

What better word than fetching to describe the cover model, a French Bulldog with a light sprinkling of sand on his face? Or a Yellow Lab taking cover under an umbrella? How about a St. Bernard wading through the surf? There are Keeshonds sprinting, German Shepherds jumping, Border Collies  catching flying discs, and Boxers doing what they do like nobody else: boxing. My favorite shot portrays a sweet Pit Bull gleefully rolling on her back in the sand, along with this quip from Colette: "You will do foolish things, but do them with enthusiasm."  

This book makes a great gift. It's a brilliant reminder that dogs have their heads on straight because they always prioritize play. To drive the point home, we get this George Bernard Shaw gem: "We don't stop playing because we grow old, we grow old because we stop playing."

The author, a member of the esteemed Dog Writers Association of America, also has her head on straight: she dedicates this book to her husband "for finding the tenacious terrier who changed our lives" - Molly, the couple's Jack Russell.  

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by Cooper Gillespie with recipes by Sally Sampson
 
Simon & Schuster, 160 pages, $14.95
 
In case you've never heard of the noted cookbook author Cooper Gillespie, he's the alter ego of the noted non-fiction writer Susan Orlean. In actual fact, he is Orlean's Welsh Springer Spaniel. And this volume is his contribution to canine culinary contentment, for as the subtitle explains, the book consists of 50 Healthy, Canine Taste-Tested Recipes for Snacks, Meals, and Treats.
 
The recipes are mouthwatering to read. How about Max's Hungarian Goulash, or Goldie's Meat Loaf Cupcakes? Make a meal of Mack and Cheese, or a snack of Paw-mesan Tail Twisters. I'd list more of the recipes if I weren't so hungry already!
 
For those worried about feeding "human" food to dogs, Cooper's dog trainer Stacy Alldredge rightly dismisses those fears, explaining that a) it won't make them beg (as long as you don't feed them from your plate, but take care to give them their own bowl and make them "sit" for their supper) and b) it won't make them fat ("Just like people, dogs don't get fat unless they eat too much and don't get enough exercise," Alldredge points out. "Healthy, fresh meat and vegetables, when consumed in proper quantities, will not make Fido fat!")
 
In between the recipes, readers are treated to charming photographs by Cami Johnson of Cooper and friends dining in, out, and around, plus judiciously-chosen quotations from various dog-loving personalities. My favorite is this Lonzo Idolswine gem: "My dog is usually pleased with what I do, because she is not infected with the concept of what I should be doing." 
 
Make even one of these recipes and your dog will be more than pleased - she'll be overjoyed. This book is good enough to eat. And you won't have to worry about leftovers, because the bowl will be licked clean.  

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by Garth Stein
 
Harper, 336 pages, $23.95
 
Here at FetchDog, we're all for books and movies that see things from a dog's eye view. Like many recent works of fiction (including A Dog About Town and The Labrador Pact), Garth Stein's new novel has a canine narrator who's a four-footed philosopher. He's a lab-terrier mix, his name is Enzo, and as he faces his own death, he dreams of returning to Earth - as a man.
 
But what distinguishes this title from the pack is the fact that it's a bona fide literary phenomenon: its author reportedly got paid $1.2 million to write it, it's for sale at Starbucks, (which appears to be gaining on Oprah as a bookish force to be reckoned with), there's a web site and a video, and as of this posting it was ranked #46 on Amazon.com.
 
The author credits two sources as his inspiration: the first was a Mongolian film called "State of Dogs," about the spirit of a deceased dog that wanders the Earth in search of his master; the second was hearing Billy Collins, former U.S. Poet Laureate, read his poem "The Revenant," which is also narrated by a dog. "It was a light-bulb moment," Stein says. "I knew I'd found my writing game plan." Which proves that watching movies, reading poetry, and just generally being a culture hound are worthwhile uses of one's time.
 
Among many other K9 koans ("Sometimes we simply have to believe"; "Hands are the windows to a man's soul"), Enzo delivers this pearl of wisdom: "Beware the whimsy of fate. She is a mean bitch of a lab." Only in Stein's case, she proved to be the sweetest spaniel imaginable.  

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by Vicki Hearne

Skyhorse Publishing, 288 pages, $14.95

Available on Amazon.com

I discovered this book while browsing animal training books in a long-ago bookstore on the ground floor of the World Trade Center. The book is still very much with me. I mean, there I was, looking for helpful hints on training my cat, who already knew how to "shake" paws with me (how cute!), and up turns this deft, book-long argument couched in classical rhetoric - on animal training. Who knew?

So I bought the book and read it. Slowly. A book-long academic document about a (normally) non-academic subject, it is not your regular page-turner. The author, the late Vicki Hearne, was an academic and an animal trainer who integrated the two pursuits into one career and fervently believed in the partnership of human and domestic animal.

In this passage, Hearne - an Airedale lover who became an outspoken advocate of the Pit Bull in print and on film - begins to parse philosophy, which she practiced at Yale and Stanford, and animal training:

. . . . I would leave the university [in the afternoon] to work with a dog or so and any horses that had been left out of the morning schedule. Here, in the various training arenas, the discourse was radically different. It was, as I have said, anthropomorphic, "morally loaded," as it has always been in the great training manuals. By this I mean that implicit as well as explicit in the trainers' language is the notion that animals are capable not only of activities requiring "IQ" - a rather arid conception - but also of a complex and delicate (though not infallible) moral understanding that is so inextricably a function of their relationships with human beings that it may well be said to constitute those relationships.

And here's her footnote, an academic device not common in books about pets:

By "moral understanding" I mean that as far as a trainer is concerned a dog is perfectly capable of understanding that he ought not to pee on the bedpost even though he might want to. Characterizing the dog's own formulations of this understanding is a separate matter. To say what I've just said is, of course, to make a claim about the nature of moral understanding.  

Nothing cute here. And this is just the introduction.

And yet this highly clausal and phrasal equivocating unfurls a seductive argument that, in the relationship between us and our animals, domestication is a two-way street. That animals, especially dogs, bring their own moral sense to our every domestic meeting with them subverts the more silly-ass notions some of us have about "pets." In staying at the level of "cute," we comfortably keep them as "poor dumb animals." What worlds of being did I leave out in so carefully, even lovingly, circumscribing my animals with the single term "pet"?

I exaggerate only a little in claiming the argument of Adam's Task was as new to me as being attacked on a clear blue day would become. I'd wondered what kind of weird inter-species vibe led some animals in their wisdom to choose us, out of all the other species, to be domesticated with. Adam's Task demands we consider the obligation we take on by acquiescing to that choice. I've re-read the book and will circle back to it again in a year or two because there's real pleasure in reading writing as skilled as the thinking it explicates.
 

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by Cathy Scott
 
Howell Book House, 256 pages, $19.99
 
Available on Amazon.com
 
Along with untold devastation, the Hurricane Katrina tragedy of 2005 brought Americans a profound lesson in the importance of animal companions as valued family members. The stories in this book are heart-wrenching and uplifting at the same time, and very much worth reading.
 
The author traveled to the Gulf on assignment for Best Friends Magazine, visiting the temporary shelters operated by MuttShack, Animal Rescue New Orleans, and others. An experienced rescuer herself, Scott conducted amphibious reporting on the ground and in boats, so her book makes you feel like a firsthand witness to history, as animals are saved and the lucky ones get to be reunited with their people.
 
Among the dogs who will leave pawprints on your heart are Himie, a Rottweiler found with a plastic bottle attached to his collar holding a note and his eye medication (he was reunited with his owner) and Red, a partially paralyzed pit bull who was hospitalized for months, fitted with wheels, then later adopted.
 
So, why keep talking about the Katrina tragedy three years later? Because the animals still need our help. Animal shelters and rescue groups around the country that took in displaced pets desperately need adopters to step up and welcome those animals into permanent homes. After you've read this book, please consider adopting from your local animal shelter or rescue group - your contribution will help ease the continuing Katrina burden. 

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By Bill Berloni and Jim Hanrahan; foreword by Bernadette Peters

The Lyons Press,  240 pages, $16.95  

Available on Amazon.com

If you have seen the Broadway musical Legally Blonde, you may have been charmed by the show's two dogs: Elle Woods' feisty Chihuahua Bruiser, and the hairdresser's adorable bundle of bulldog. What you may not know is that those dogs' endearing performances are the result of the skilled and compassionate work of Bill Berloni, Broadway's go-to guy for animal training. After 30 years in the business, from dogs to birds to rats, from "Annie" to "Nick and Nora" to "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang," Berloni has finally written about his unusual career that bridges animal rescues and Broadway in this compelling book.  

The book begins and ends with the story of a girl and a dog, from Annie and Sandy, to Elle and Bruiser. At 19, Bill Berloni began his animal trainer career by stumbling into a job training the very first "Sandy" dog for the musical that was to become "Annie." At the time, Berloni was still a very young and ambitious actor when he lucked into this job. It becomes clear from his first story about rescuing the dog who would be Sandy from a depressing Connecticut pound, that Berloni's heart is as big as Madison Square Garden. Though he volunteered to train Sandy in order to get his actor's union card, Berloni inevitably discovers his true calling - rescuing animals from dire circumstances and turning them into stars. And Sandy becomes Berloni's best friend for life, starring with five different Annies over seven years (including a tween Sarah Jessica Parker), and becoming a furry advocate for shelter dogs.

This book is a treat for animal lovers and theater fiends - if you are both (as I am), it cannot be beat. Backstage theatre gossip abounds. Berloni loves the world of the theater, but he sees it with a clear eye. As a "behind the scenes" guy, he generously praises the crew and stage managers who make the magic happen.  However, Berloni has often had to fight for time, money and rehearsal space for his performers. Some gifted and well-known directors reveal themselves as none too bright when it comes to the time and attention required to truly train an animal. (Good guys include Jerry Mitchell, Susan Stroman, and Mike Nichols.) On the other hand, it is no surprise to learn that Bernadette Peters, who yearly co-sponsors Broadway Barks, a pet adoption fair on the Great White Way, is an animal lover. What is surprising to learn is that she is actually allergic to dogs - and that her tough-minded star power is the only reason Berloni and his staff got paid during a production of "Gypsy."

If you relish rescue stories, be prepared to bring Kleenex. Berloni, collaborating with his brother-in-law Jim Hanrahan, is a natural dramatist. You'll hold your breath as Berloni rescues animals from some despicable situations, and then brings out the best in them despite serous obstacles. Berloni's training techniques, based on his own instinct and his innate compassion, fascinate. Read this book, and I guarantee, you will never see a white rat, a little lamb, or a pig the same way - and you'll come away with an increased respect for actors who must share the stage with animals. Most especially, you'll root for Chico, the ferocious, abused Chihuahua from Newark who has become the adorable mascot - and trademark - of "Legally Blonde." His recovery and rehab rival anything that's ever happened to Robert Downey Jr. - plus, he does eight shows a week!

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by Jana Kohl
 
Fireside, 224 pages, $25.95
 
Available on Amazon.com
 
Baby is a one-legged senior Poodle who suffered terribly during her years as a breeding bitch at a puppy mill. At age 9, Baby won the lottery: she got adopted by the author of this book, who got an idea: embark on a mission to educate dog lovers about the horrors of puppy mills, and to help end the cruel exploitation of millions of other Babys across the country and around the globe.
 
Turning Baby into an ambassadog for puppy mill awareness, her new owner morphed into the ultimate stage mother, arranging to photograph her Baby with some very famous people. We see Baby doing yoga with Mariel Hemingway, enjoying red-carpet moments in the arms of Lindsay Lohan and Jane Fonda (with Gloria Steinem cheering her on in the background), sharing laughs with Eric Idle and Bill Maher, having a heart-to-heart with Montel Williams and a fashion moment with designer Todd Oldham.
 
We also get to see the warm, fuzzy side of numerous political animals as they pause for face time with Baby; among the little dog's constituents are Senators Barack Obama, Edward Kennedy, Elizabeth Dole, and John Ensign.
 
The best part of this book is the way it treats animal cruelty as equal in seriousness to child protection and other important social issues; noted children's advocate John Walsh makes an appearance to say "I believe in justice - for all." 
 
Hopefully everyone will read Baby's story and be inspired to spread the word that pet-shop puppies are the product of cruel puppy mills. Buying that "doggie in the window" is supporting the very system that abused and exploited Baby. Far better to take a stand by adopting from an animal shelter or rescue group.
 

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by Annette Howard  

Thunder Bay Press, 96 pages, $9.95  

Available on Amazon.com

Here at FetchDog, we are big believers in dressing dogs to protect them from rain and snow, and to observe Santa's favorite holiday, Christmas.  

But there are other occasions that call for a dog dressed to the canines, and that's where this book comes in handy. With these step-by-step patterns, each helpfully illustrated with photos, you can easily create adorable getups for Spot to wear whenever the spirit moves. How about an Uncle Sam outfit for July 4th, or a Flower frock for Easter?  

After leafing through this book, I now feel fully prepared for the annual Halloween parade hosted by Brooklyn's BARC Shelter, where dog people go the whole hog in costuming their canines. This is significant, because I'm sewing-challenged.

Even if you don't get around to picking up scissors, needle, and thread to craft a clever costume, it's a treat to look at the brilliant photographs of, say, a French bulldog in a Frenchman's costume complete with jaunty beret and horizontally-striped shirt - or a Dalmatian dressed up as Pierrot. 

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by John Clifton  

Foley Square Books, 102 pages, $8.95  

Available on Amazon.com

The title of this book is certainly an attention-getter, and it's meant to be. The author edits the online newsletter Fighting Back: Canine Cancer Monthly and is well acquainted with the subject of dogs and cancer because Sparky, his Yorkshire Terrier, is a survivor.  

So, why not a book about beating cancer? Because a) Clifton wrote that book already, and b) some vaccinations have been linked to the appearance of certain canine cancers.  

Sparky's experience spurred his owner's investigation into the complicated issue of pet inoculations. In turn, Clifton makes it simple for the rest of us, providing such important information as how vaccines work, the difference between "live virus" and "killed" vaccines, an explanation of titers, and why only vets - NOT pet-shop personnel - should administer inoculations. Clifton is not opposed to all vaccinations; his goal, he writes, is not to turn readers against their vets, but to be their pets' first line of defense against potentially fatal over-vaccination.

The book is short and easy to read, from its large typeface to its concise, clearly-outlined chapters. If it were a magazine article, it would be one of the most important on health you'd ever want to clip, save, and pin to the fridge with magnets. That can get messy, so it's high time this vital information takes the form of a book that may be referenced as often as necessary - and certainly any time you receive a notice in the mail that "it's time for your pet's booster shots." 

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By Kim Levin

Andrews McMeel, 130 pages, $14.95  

There's really no such thing as a picture book about "dogs." There is only - case in point here - a book about Lucy and Boomer; Owen; Charlie; Josie.  

And if Kim Levin's engaging portraits of these true individuals aren't proof enough (though they most decidedly are ... ) of their very specific personalities, each comes with a bio every bit as particular as your own. Josie, a 3-year-old lab mix with haunting eyes, once "ate a pound of peppermint patties, including the wrappers" and sunbathes "on both sides."

Levin, the photographer behind Bark & Smile Pet Portraits, is a master at capturing her sitters' essential qualities. This obviously takes patience, as well as deep respect. Oh, and a good eye. But most of all, an understanding that there will never, ever be another dog like Jake. Or Simone. Or Salty. Or ...

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By Karen Shanley

Lyons Press, 238 pages, $14.95

Available on Amazon.com   

Have you ever dreamed about dogs? Surely you have. But you've probably never dreamed of them like Karen Shanley has.

When her beloved Sheltie, Kiera, dies, Shanley dreams she's come back - as an Aussie pup somewhere out there that she must find. And find her she does. Superstition? Wish fulfillment? Maybe. But chilling nonetheless, when she finds Kiera 2 at a breeder's. And she falls into something resembling a nightmare more than a dream when she also takes home her new dog's sister, the deaf Molly.

Thus this haunting memoir of a woman's devotion to her dogs also becomes an undercover dog training diary. That's because the trouble brought home with these two dogs, and with Molly's replacement, a dog named Magic who brings it into his owner's life only in a most paradoxical way, bring Shanley to the brink. Her family suffers from her dogs' sufferings, and she must find a way to reach these otherwise unreachable animals. (Her story becomes a triumphant advertisement for positive reinforcement and clicker - or "kind and gentle" - training, likely the only type that would work with dogs this sensitive and smart.)

There is sadness here, too, but Shanley learns how to transform it - by first allowing herself to fully experience it. Although this is a very personal story, with very particular challenges arising out of very particular dogs, there is a message here for everyone. From tragedy can come release, so long as one remains open to following one's dogs wherever they may lead. Even into the world of dreams and back.

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text and photographs by Page Dickey  

Harry N. Abrams, 96 pages, $16.96

Available on Amazon.com

Perhaps you're an avid gardener but you haven't got a dog because you fear he might dig up your daffodils or tear up your tulips? The 90 charming color photographs in this blooming beauty of a book spotlight brilliantly-behaved dogs in lushly-planted paradises, and beg the case that a garden is rootless without a sweet dog to sun himself in it.

The dogs featured range from purebreds to mutts; their gardens are tended by people like Dick Button, the former figure skating champ, and designer Bunny Williams. Many dogs ham it up, looking directly at Dickey's camera. But the sweetest shots are the candids of, say, a spaniel taking a sip from a birdbath, or various garden hounds watching quizzically as the tables turn and their humans doggedly dig in the earth!  

The photos are real draw here; the text merely describes the edenic gardens and their angelic dogs without telling how they got that way. Absolutely no practical service information is provided on what to plant and how, or how to train dogs not to demolish a gardener's hard work. For those pointers, you'll need to consult the excellent Dog Friendly Gardens, Garden Friendly Dogs. 

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There was a time when I thought my dogs and my flower beds couldn't co-exist, but Cheryl Smith, the author of Dog Friendly Gardens, Garden Friendly Dogs, taught me otherwise. Smith, a master gardener and a dog trainer, comes at the Fido-garden issue from both the planning and dog behavior angles.

Smith offers advice on planning your yard and garden, on choosing plants that can withstand a dog, and on plants to avoid because they're poisonous to pets. Her book, which has sections on lawns (which should be chemical free, of course), vegetable gardens, orchards, and patios, can be helpful no matter how big the patch of dirt you share with your dog is.

If you are a vegetable gardener, Smith writes about growing vegetables for the whole family - even the family dog.

Smith's dog-training advice is positive and easy to understand. I love the idea that not only can I train my dogs to behave well in the garden, I can also get them to help me out there. (I'm still working on getting one of them to fetch my garden gloves!)

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by Mellon Tytell

William Morrow, 96 pages, $19.95

Available on Amazon.com

There are few more eloquent testimonials to how profoundly an adopted mutt can change a person than this exquisite book of photographs. The lucky dog of the title is an 86-pound mixed-breed named Hunter, who might have ended up an animal shelter statistic if the author hadn't seen his picture in the window of a Vermont store.  

That picture changed Mellon Tytell's life. Before Hunter, she had photographed many intriguing people and places all over the globe. After adopting him, all that changed; she couldn't bear to leave him behind. So to that original picture of Hunter she added thousands of her own, chronicling what appears to be his every move. We see Hunter racing through the snow... riding in the car... carrying a big stick... playing with his best friend, a Beagle... reclining on a Persian carpet... jumping high in the air... gamely wearing a blonde wig ... gazing pensively into the distance, his aristocratic snout held high. Reflected in his golden eye we see Tytell and a sunlit window. "To me," she writes, "Hunter was more fascinating than a Pollock or a Picasso."  

In his eleventh year, Hunter was unable to walk the two flights of stairs to Tytell's apartment, so she gave up her busy Manhattan life and moved with her dog to Vermont, where acupuncture treatments enabled him to join his mistress on hikes through the countryside he loved.  

As beautiful as Tytell's images are, her writing is equally strong. "I knew that Hunter would leave me for any man who walked into the room," is her remark on a photograph of Hunter keeping her husband company in the bathroom. On the following page is a shot of Hunter yawning wide, which she wryly captions, "But I was madly in love with him."  

"His fur smelled of pine trees and wild roses," Tytell muses - and many of the most powerful statements in her book are juxtapositions of extreme closeups on that brindle fur with landscape shots.  

This book would be wonderful enough if it were just about a dog. But more than that, it's about the unstoppable passage of time, and what that does to us all. Tytell's tribute to her best friend is a good reminder that facing hard truths can be its own art form, and a beautiful one at that.

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by Bernadette Peters

Blue Apple Books, 40 pages, $17.95  

Available on Amazon.com

If you are both a dog lover and a theatre fiend, it's hard to beat the lovely summer day that Shubert Alley, the epicenter of Broadway, presents Broadway Barks, a fantastic pet adoption event hosted by Mary Tyler Moore and Bernadette Peters, both pet adopters extraordinaire. Each year, a huge array of cheery Broadway performers, from Audra McDonald to David Hyde Pierce, deploy their considerable star power to entice the audience to adopt a deserving animal. Many people and animals go home very happy that day, with a song in their hearts.

Now, Bernadette Peters, with able help from artist Liz Murphy, has turned the event into a charming children's picture book. Told from the point of view of Douglas, an abandoned dog, the book follows Douglas from his lonely outdoor home, to a chance meeting with a pretty lady who looks a lot like Bernadette Peters, to his triumphant "performance" on the Broadway Barks stage. This leads to his adoption by a little girl named Isabel. Douglas, renamed Kramer, gets a new home, a nice dinner, and an endless supply of belly rubs. A perfect adoption story.

The book's mixed media artwork, cleverly blending fabric, paint, and newsprint, makes New York look fantastic, and the story, though simple, has humor and power. As an added bonus, the book includes a CD that features Peters reading the text of her book, plus Peters' extraordinary singing - of the very first song she's written herself!

This would be a great book to get your dog-crazy early reader, particularly those who might be bugging you to volunteer at the local shelter. (Trust me, they exist - I know a young lady who knows EXACTLY the day, month, and year she'll be old enough to volunteer. She likes Hannah Montana, but for her, the officers of Animal Precinct are the real rock stars.)

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By Joe Camp

Harmony, 272 pages, $24.95

Available on Amazon.com

Joe Camp, the man who launched Benji (and a thousand shelter-dog adoptions) in 1974 and made the winsome mutt a major franchise, now brings his sensitivity and deep concern for all animals to the training of horses. But this new book is really a model for the consideration of any species we seek to understand.

His methodology, outlined in the introduction, is radical when stood next to the traditional treatment of equines. But it is really the only one worth entertaining: understand the true nature of the animal, Camp says, his history and evolution and peculiar language. Like dogs, horses have been our companions for thousands of years, but all too few people have sought to think of things from their point of view. Whether predator, like dogs, or prey, like horses, the principle is the same.  

Camp's introduction to horses, though coming after three decades of working with dogs, could not have been guided by a better teacher: Monty Roberts, author of "The Man Who Listens to Horses," and one of the foremost proponents of what is called natural horsemanship - a "new" method of training that is actually the original one, being based on the study of herd dynamics.

Camp is one smart and determined guy. That is why he was willing to take on the large subject of horses, from the ground up, relatively late in life. We are the beneficiaries of this - and so are his horses. What he discovered under Roberts's tutelage, and from his own ability to look carefully at the evidence in front of him, was how horses learn. Codified, it's called "positive reinforcement," and the application is now a burgeoning trend in dog training and horsemanship both.  

If you're thinking about adding a horse to your menagerie (we know it already contains dogs!), get this book before you do. By following in Joe Camp's footsteps, your horse will be happy to follow in yours.

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by Julia Szabo

Workman, 256 pages, $12.95  

Available on Amazon.com  

Some choose underdogs. Some have underdogs thrust upon them. All of us end up content. This book is an expansive celebration of underdogs, a.k.a. mutts, and their people.  

A cheerfully-designed canine catalog, it gives us history, dog care tips, and lots of pictures: photographs by Bruce Weber and Mary Ellen Mark, a comic by the great Lynda Barry, whose purebred poodle Fred Milton falls hard for lady mutts, as well as drawings by Robert Risko, Marisa Marchetto, Martha Szabo, and Danny Gregory.  There are mutt-owning celebrity shout-outs from Hilary Swank to Isaac Mizrahi to - of course - Kevin Bacon. Ally Sheedy's moving tale of dog rescue reveals that her toddler daughter Rebecca, admiring their underdog Geordie, decided she, too, was a mutt.

What can an underdog do? Practically anything, from search and rescue to therapy to advanced agility. In this book you'll learn that of my special heroes, animal trainer William Berloni makes it a point to find his Broadway dog stars in animal shelters.  

If you've ever wondered exactly what doggy ingredients went into your Heinz 57 pooch, the book features an extensive catalog of mixes, from the Lab retriever/Basset hound blend to a Dalmatian-pit bull. The book lays out a nice grid of dog breed traits, which made me laugh - I think my underdog Faith's food obsession (Beagle) will always compete with her mania for the water (Retriever): her idea of a perfect world is probably a lake full of liver treats. The good news is that mutts, thanks to something called hybrid vigor, tend to be healthier than their purebred counterparts.   

So how do you get yourself an underdog? The book's dog shelter and rescue group etiquette guide will help you through the journey to underdog ownership, at the end of which you'll have a completely unique dog.

To quote the dog-loving chanteuse Nellie McKay, "If you need a companion/Why just go right to the pound/And find yourself a hound."

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HarperCollins, 32 pages, $16.99

Kawaii means cute in Japan, where cuteness - a.k.a. kawaisa - is taken very, very seriously. What could be more kawaii than a puppy? Nothing - hence the tremendous popular success of The Dog Artist Collection, whose signature is photographing puppies at extreme angles, using special lenses to highlight the unique features of each beautiful breed. The result is irresistible funhouse-mirror imagery that adorns postcards, calendars, games, and many other best-selling products.  

The furry franchise's latest product is this slim volume that's perfect eye candy for lulling little ones to sleep - especially if they've been dreaming of puppies anyway. The story follows a pampered princess Pug pup as she gets help from her fairy dogmother in finding a handsome prince.

Before you get ready to gag, here's great news: this specimen of kawaisa carries a very valuable message. What sets the puppy-love "tail" apart is its moral - "Be careful what you wish for, my dear!" That message is delivered with such refreshingly feminist spirit, with such a surprisingly cool ending, that it should be required reading for girls of all ages. No kidding. 

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by Matt Haig
 
Viking Adult, 352 pages, $23.95
 
Available on Amazon.com
 
Novelist Matt Haig follows last year's Dead Fathers Club, his re-telling of Hamlet, with this dog's-eye-view take on the dissolution of one contemporary English family. Haig's obviously still got the Dane on the brain - the narrator of his new novel is a sweet Black Lab named Prince who lives by the creed "Duty over all." 
 
This is no kiddie tale; rather, it's a grownup appreciation of all that dogs do to keep us humans on track. Prince takes it upon himself to prevent his family unit from falling apart, but alas, nobody's cooperating with him - not his master, Adam Hunter (who's got his eye on a younger woman), nor his mistress, Adam's wife Kate (who's caught the eye of her husband's old school mate, who happens to be married to the young object of Adam's lust). The teenage kids of Adam and Kate are no help, either.
 
It pays to remember that our dogs are exquisitely sensitive, not only to sight, sound, and smell, but to human stress; they absorb our anxieties and take psychic bullets for us by lowering our blood pressure in times of trouble. And yet, for the most part, we stupid humans can't understand what our brilliant dogs are trying to tell us. They are smart, if mute; we can speak, but we're dumb. This is the paradox faced by every good dog, regardless of breed - and Haig is man enough to give it voice in this novel.
 
A handsome hero who cannot talk yet has so much to say - the dramatic possibilities are infinite, which explains why Brad Pitt's production company, Plan B, has optioned this book. Sadly, black dogs have not historically made their mark as movie stars, due to the logistical difficulties of recording them on film. So anyone interested in movies featuring dogs will be keeping close watch to see whether Prince is portrayed onscreen by a yellow or chocolate lab - or whether the director (whoever s/he is) surprises everyone by investing the cinematographic effort needed to give a black canine lead his long-overdue moment in the spotlight. 

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Artisan, 176 pages, $15.95  

Edited by Michael J. Rosen  

Available on Amazon.com

This brilliant book first came out a few years ago, in a very different format. A slim, oversize paperback, it was the book equivalent of a Saluki. Now, the publisher has wisely opted to reissue it, repackaging the book as a compact hardcover with beautiful, glossy pages - think of this new version as a literary French Bulldog: compact, hard-bodied, yet cute enough to sit on the coffee table and get noticed.  

With writings on dogs by the likes of Edward Albee, Ann Beattie, Jane Smiley, Armistead Maupin, and Merrill Markoe, it well deserves to get noticed. There is literally something for everyone in this heartfelt collection, which is that rare thing in a canine-themed anthology: a true work of literature.

My favorite chapter of this book is "The Eyes Have It," in which the excellent Arthur Yorinks, founder and director of the Night Kitchen Radio Theater, immortalizes one unforgettable summer vacation with his family's Border Collies. It's a real-life cliffhanger that's impossible, improbable, heartbreaking, hilarious - and ab