Marley: A Dog Like No Other

Posted on Nov 6, 2008
By Tanya Turgeon

Marley: A Dog Like No Other

by John Grogan

HarperEntertainment, 196 pages, $6.99

The yellow labrador retriever we've all come to know and love, whose name graced the New York Times best seller list in 2005, is making his way to the big screen this December followed by the release of the Marley & Me DVD. In preparation for the big move, the literary industry has released his story in a brand-new, condensed, family-friendly format with beautiful, glossy photo inserts. It's the perfect dose of memory refreshment on the escapades of crazy, loveable Marley.

John Grogan subtitled his original version "Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog," and page for page Marley does his best to continue carrying out that legacy. Marley's unrestrained reactions to the world around him take the credo of living in the moment to a whole new extreme. Thunderstorms instigate primal tantrums, resulting in gouged doors and tornado-quality destruction. Poodles awaken Marley's animal lusts, setting a metal cafe table in motion across a crowded sidewalk. A gold necklace, toy soldier, bottle cap, and stereo cover are only a few of the things that rouse his indiscriminate appetite.

This time around, "Chapter 10: The Audition" reads like an omen of Marley's journey to the big screen this holiday season. The anecdote focuses on Marley's brief tenure as a movie dog wreaking havoc on the set of "The Last Home Run." In a display of drama, drool, and larger-than-live personality, he earns two minutes of screen time and a name credit on the straight-to-video production. Years later, this star of the Grogan family would infiltrate bookshelves across America, finding true fame in the hearts of all who read his story.

Marley groupies may feel nostalgic for the more colorful language and adult situations included in the original text, so keep those dog-eared 2005 copies nearby for reference. Aiming this movie tie-in paperback edition at middle-school-age readers widens the demographic to include younger dog enthusiasts and provides a quick-fix for those with time constraints. In the end, it seems clever editing finally helped John Grogan tame Marley into the all-around family dog he was always meant to be.