Of Scrooge and Marley and Me

Merry Christmas to all my readers! Here's hoping the holidays find you in the company of family, friends and furry ones.

We're big on seeing a movie on Christmas Day and this year's pick is Marley and Me, for obvious reasons. Last week, I heard John Grogan, author of the book of the same name and a former Philadelphia Inquirer reporter, speak at our Free Library. I was actually prepared to dislike him--no doubt, jealously on my part plays a role in that prior impression of him--but I was charmed by his story telling abilities. He is a warm, funny speaker, who gives you the impression that his success is all still a new, fun experience, even as he admitted there are aspects that are indeed, getting old.

Anyway, he was in town to promote his new book, The Long Trip Home, a memoir about growing up in a very Catholic family in Michigan, his distancing of himself from that family and his eventual return to the fold, but he found himself answering a lot of questions about Marley & Me, the book as well as the movie.

For starters, while he did not write the screen play for the movie, he managed to retain consulting rights on the script--a laudable achievement--and was pleased that they actually accepted some of his suggestions. He also got to hang around on the set in both Miami and Philadelphia, go to the premier (with Clyde, the dog who plays Marley, as his "date"), and experience what certainly has to be an out of body experience--watching someone else act out your life.

For those of you who care, there are actually 22 dogs who play Marley in the movie--including the many adorable puppies--but the chief honcho is Clyde, a rescue lab who retain enough of Marley's "energy" to be incredibly convincing. Grogan now owns one of those puppies--a male named Woodson--who joins Gracie as one of two labs in his life.

Apparently there is also a dog in his new book, so dogs were always an important aspect of Grogan's life. In fact when someone in the audience asked about whether or not their family--kids are 10 and 12--should get a dog--he negotiated skillfully by saying that dogs were wonderful ways to teach children about responsibility, etc. but they were also a lot of work.

Back to that jealousy on my part. While Grogan is a masterful storyteller, and the story he tells is not so much about Marley as it is about he and his wife, I am envious that he hit it big with his "animal" book, while I did not. Pretty simple, really. But actually after meeting him, I am less jealous. Grogan is a great storyteller--I am a great reporter--and there is a difference. He has a gift for telling a story in a way that makes you feel like you are a part of it. I have the ability to tell a story in a way that makes you feel like you are watching it--and perhaps gaining a little insight into what makes the characters tick. It's a subtle difference and both are important skills. He is also very funny.

So off to see the screen version and to be reminded once again about the power of an animal's love--a very appropriate sentiment on this day.

May yours be merry and bright.