Tuesday, September 18, 2018

Bow WOW! Mystery Dogs!



HANK PHILLIPPI RYAN: Hurray hurray, fireworks and champagne! We're celebrating like mad here in the jungle—flinging rose petals and confetti for the debut mystery of our dear darling talented wonderful Paula Munier. 

A BORROWING OF BONES is amazing. 

And so is Paula.

::pausing now while we all cheer::  

And what could make a terrific mystery even better? It co-stars a dog! Even better? TWO dogs.

I will say no more. Except bow WOW.


Curious Dogs and Mysterious Incidents
           By Paula Munier

“Is there any point to which you would wish to draw my attention?”
“To the curious incident of the dog in the night-time.”
“The dog did nothing in the night-time.”
“That was the curious incident,” remarked Sherlock Holmes.

Canines and crime fiction go together like, well, mystery and murder. When I wrote A
Borrowing of Bones, a mystery featuring Army MP Mercy Carr and bomb-sniffing Belgian shepherd Elvis and game warden Troy Warner and search-and-rescue Newfoundland-retriever-mix Susie Bear, I knew I was following in a rich tradition of dogs in mysteries.

Here are a few of the best:

Snap and Waggo
The first literary dogs I fell in love with were the dogs in the Bobbsey Twins books: Snap, the retired circus dog, and Waggo, the fox terrier. These were my first—and favorite—mysteries.  The Bobbsey twins had it all—a big family, lots of adventures, even Baked Alaska in one story—and a high-energy fox terrier and a circus dog full of tricks. Oh, to be a Bobbsey twin!

Togo
Nancy Drew had a dog, too, a terrier Togo. Nancy named him after the courageous sled dog who ran the lion’s share of the famous journey across the frozen tundra to Nome, Alaska with the serum the townspeople needed to survive the diphtheria epidemic. I know, I know, we all thought that was Balto, who gets most of the credit, as he ran the last lap of the trip. But Togo was the one who ran the longest leg of the relay by 200 miles and swam through the ice floes of Norton Sound to save his team and driver. Apparently the ever-clever Nancy knew all along.

Asta
I discovered Dashiell Hammett in my teens. I read all the books and stories and obsessed over them all. The Maltese Falcon, the most, despite the fact that there was no Asta. Which brings us to The Thin Man, Nick and Nora, and their beloved Schnauzer Asta. To me, Nick and Nora Charles were the epitome of high-society chic, and Asta was the epitome of canine-society chic. If she could talk, I knew she’d be as witty as Nick and Nora. And demand a martini immediately.

Pearl the Wonder Dog
By my twenties I’d discovered Robert B. Parker’s Spenser series. Boston, a tough-but-tender errant knight/private detective, an even tougher enigmatic sidekick, a sexy and smart shrink girlfriend, and a spoiled German short-haired pointer named Pearl the Wonder Dog. In real life, Bob loved his pointers, all named Pearl, and he immortalized them in his books as Pearl the Wonder Dog. A very writerly and gallant thing to do. Very Bob, very Spenser. All literary dogs should be so lucky.

Dog
In Craig Johnson’s Longmire series, the laconic hero Longmire is so laconic that his dog’s name is, well, Dog. In keeping with that, I’ll keep it short: Dog is a great dog. Period.

Henri
In her series Inspector Armand Gamache, Louise Penny has created a man of honor and humanity we readers love. So it’s no surprise that Gamache’s German shepherd is as wise and wonderful as he is. As Gamache puts it himself in How the Light Gets In:  “He realized Henri already knew all he’d ever need. He knew he was loved. And he knew how to love.”

Chet
The most engaging dog in crime fiction must be Chet, the K-9 school drop-out with the mismatched ears who becomes the smarter half of Spencer Quinn’s Chet and Bernie series. I bought the first novel, Dog On It, at the New England Crime Bake and had Peter Abrahams aka Spencer Quinn sign it for me. I read it one snowy evening, and spent the winter reading all the rest of them. These stories are written from Chet’s point of view, a risky proposition that Peter pulls off with aplomb.

Which Brings Us Right Back to Sherlock Holmes
The most famous dog in crime fiction is the “spectral hound” in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the Baskervilles. This story scared me silly; I have Sherlock Holmes to thank for a still-real fear of a bloodhound-mastiff mix—not that I have ever run across one. (I also have Sherlock to blame for a still-real fear of snakes, but that’s another story.)

In my novel A BORROWING OF BONES, my hero dogs owe much to these literary dogs I’ve read and loved. Elvis is fierce and formidable; Susie Bear is friendly and faithful. Both are fun to write—and good at helping their humans solve the mystery and save the day.

Just like in real life.

HANK: Hurray! Oh, I said that. Anyway. (And I had no idea that was Nancy’s dog’s name. Huh.) ANYway. I’m madly in love with Asta, too, always have been. What about you, reds and readers? Who are your favorite literary dogs? And I’m awarding A BORROWING OF BONES to one lucky commenter!



Paula Munier is the author of the bestselling Plot Perfect, The Writer’s Guide to Beginnings, Writing with Quiet Hands, and the acclaimed memoir Fixing Freddie. The first novel in her mystery series, A BORROWING OF BONES (Minotaur, 2018) was inspired by the hero working dogs she met through Mission K9 Rescue, her own Newfoundland-retriever-mix rescue Bear, and her lifelong passion for crime fiction. In her fabulous day job as Senior Literary Agent and Content Strategist for Talcott Notch Literary, she represents many great writers. Her specialties include crime fiction, women’s fiction, upmarket fiction, MG and crossover YA, high-concept SFF, and nonfiction. She lives in New England with her family, Bear, Freddie, and a tortie tabby named Ursula.


124 comments:

  1. Congratulations on your new book, Paula . . . “A Borrowing of Bones” is definitely on my to-read list.

    Favorite literary dogs? Well, aside from loving everything about the Bobbsey Twins [because Jean and I were twins, after all], I’ve always had a soft spot in my heart for Pearl, the Wonder Dog and for Bob, the fox terrier in Agatha Christie’s “Dumb Witness” . . . .

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  2. I don't even remember Nancy having a dog. Was it only in a few books, or did I just never pay that much attention even as I've reread as an adult?

    I'm going to have to go with Reddy as my favorite fictional dog. No surprise there since I work the Trixie Belden series in at every chance I get, right?

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    1. I forgot about Trixie Belden. I loved Trixie Belden, too. I think I still have one or two of those. I’m going to have to re-read them now. Thank you for reminding me.

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    2. I totally forgot that Nancy had a dog, too! I think I was distracted by all the peril!

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  3. My favorite dogs are Neil, the St Bernard in Topper, Grey Friats Bobbie, who was real, and last but not least, Toto in the Wizard of Oz. My little Toby played Toto when he was 18 months old and hit his mark every time.

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    1. Oh,Neil of course! Perfect. And when did Toby play Toto?

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    2. Okay, it's early for me, but I read that as, "he bit his mark every time." I thought, "Bravo, Toby! Way to go, method actor!"

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    3. Toto! We always had very large dogs, none of whom was small enough to fit into a basket. I always wanted a dog small enough to fit into a basket. And on my 10th birthday I got a little poodle puppy named Rogue who fit very nicely into a basket, just like Toto. My very best birthday ever.

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    4. It was 11 years ago. Nazareth College put out a casting call and Toby and one other little dog made the cut. Equity regs say that a dog can’t be on stage two days in a row. There were also two Dorothys. All were understudies every other show. Ten performances in all. And yes Gigi, he was definitely a method actor, even fell asleep during the poppy scene.

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    5. That’s awesome! And what a good stage mom you are!

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  4. Congratulations, Paula! I don't remember Nancy's dog, either. Ann points out Toto. I confess to not having read most of those classics you mentioned, with the exception of Louise Penny and Chet. But a sleuth owning a dog - seems tricky. Somebody has to take that dog out on a regular basis, right? Anyway, best of luck with the new book - it's on my pile.

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    1. Yes, that’s why it’s difficult to have a character who owns a dog!

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    2. Ha! Well, when you were writing about working dogs, it makes sense for the dogs to be with your characters most of the time. So I have that advantage. But I do have to go back and make sure the dogs are in every scene. And make sure they’re doing something interesting.

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    3. Deb manages both dogs and kids very well

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  5. Pearl the Wonder Dog is probably the literary dog that I've read about the most.

    But of course, it was the hound in the Hound of the Baskervilles that was probably my first literary dog as that book was one of the foundational stories for my love of mysteries.

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    1. Such a scary story. I still love dogs, but I’ll be forever afraid of snakes. Thank you, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

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    2. I think most people are afraid of snakes in some fashion. You never know which are poisonous.

      Hank, I still remember the illustrated book (which was a thick half-size paperback) that I first read The Hound of the Baskervilles. It was like it was supposed to be for younger readers, but didn't skimp on the actual story to make it kid friendly or something.

      Paula, I love dogs as well but my dog ownership days are over.

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    3. You’ll just have to read about them instead. We have cats and dogs but I have to read about horses LOL

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  6. Put me down as another Nancy Drew reader who doesn't remember her dog. It has been a long time since I read the books though. But I do like the main dog in Liz Mugavero's Pawsitively Organic series. I want to say Shaggy, but I think that's Liz's real dog's name. Wow, this makes me sound like I have a really horrible memory! (Okay, I looked it up, and Liz's fictional dog is named Scruffy. Close enough to Shaggy that I think I should get a pass for mixing them up!)

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  7. The only dogs I remember well are Pearl the Wonder Dog and Chet. Chet the Jet will always be my favorite. Nothing against Pearl, but come on, Chet really carries the load while Pearl is just there.

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    1. True! And Chet is coming back, I hear! I was with Spencer Quinn over the weekend! Lots of news in the works

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    2. Yes, I cannot wait, but it won't be until next spring. Luckily there are plenty of good books to read until then!

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  8. Welcome Paula and Congratulations on the book! I also vote for Pearl the Wonder Dog. The others may be amazing in their own right but I need to admit that I've never read Nancy Drew, THe Hardy Boys, or Bobbsey Twins (I was roaming the moors with Heathcliff) My cinema fav is Asta!

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    1. Does anybody know anything about ASTA?

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    2. You were obviously very precocious. I couldn’t bear to roam the moors with Heathcliff until I was over 40.

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  9. Congratulations on your new release! Great dog and author photo.

    Louise Penny's Henri. I asked her once at a book signing why she didn't feature the dog in all her books and she replied that it might get tiresome for the readers. Henri with his satellite dish ears? Never! And Martin Walker's Gigi and Balzac, the truffle-hunting basset hounds owned by Bruno, Chief of Police.

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    1. And Louise has her own Bishop, right?

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    2. We had a basset hound when I was a kid named Otto Blitz. Friendliest, goofiest dog ever. He did not hunt truffles but I suppose he could have. I have to read those books now, I have one, I just haven’t gotten to it yet.

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  10. Paula, congratulations! Another day, another great book to add to my list of wanna-reads! My favorite dog is Stranger, the sheep-herding dog with more brains than most of the humans in Martha Grimes' The Old Silent. And if movies count, I'm sneaking in a vote for Pig, who wanted with all his heart to herd the sheep! ;-)

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    1. I loved Stranger. I forgot about that book, but there’s another one I’m going to have to re-read. Thank you!

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  11. Congratulations, Paula! I remember Nancy Drew's dog, but I also seem to remember that the origin of his name was that she found him as a stray and he had "to go"--she didn't think she would keep him. I was conflicted over whether his name should be pronounced "two-go" like the phrase "has to go" or "toe-go" like the African nation. I know nothing of the Togo sled dog.

    As for other literary dogs, what about David Rosenfelt's Tara in the Andy Carpenter mysteries? Deb's books abound with dogs, of course, and some of them even play starring roles, like Tess the terrier, and the search and rescue dogs in "No Mark Upon Her". I also really, really liked the human/dog partnership in Spencer Quinn's "The Right Side." And of course Chet is the smarter of the pair. He's part border collie, isn't he?

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    1. It is so much fun to hear Spencer talk about Chet! And what he needs to know to write from a dog’s point of view… Fascinating!

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    2. I love Tara, and I love the dogs in Deborah Crombie’s books as well.
      Interesting about Togo. Togo fans claim that’s where she got the name, so maybe that’s where “Carolyn Keene” got the name. And then gave a different origin for the name in the story. I’m gonna have to look this up and study this further. Thank you for pointing it out, it’s fascinating to see how things may morph from writer’s mind to words on page.

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    3. Thanks, Paula! I love books with working dogs in them, and can't wait to read yours!

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  12. I am looking forward to reading this new book. I just found the Chet and Bernie series in my library, so it is going on my list! I love mysteries with dogs in them, just don't tell my cats that 😊

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    1. Spencer Quinn has a secret about that… Coming soon!

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    2. I have lots of cats in the book, too. Because our tabby Ursula would never forgive me if I didn’t.

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  13. We can't forget V.I. Warshawski and her dogs - can't recall their names in the moment - Peppy, mabye? But regardless they are her faithful companions, shared with her neighbour - an interesting component of Sara Paretsky's stories for me -- how VI and Mr. Contrera share the responsibilities of dog ownership.

    (As an aside and on a different topic: I recently picked up a Bobbsey Twins book at a neighbourhood garage sale, just to see what it was like to read it as a woman in her late 50s. Yikes! Within two pages it became too much for me - the fat shaming of the chubby kids and the stereotype of 'the beautiful young wife' caused me to set it aside pretty quickly. The animal characters couldn't save it for me.)

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    1. Oops - and I meant to say that I'm enjoying meeting the amazing dogs in A Borrowing of Bones. They are wonderful characters in the story!

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    2. Yes, paula‘s dogs are quite amazing… Really special, with singular personalities. ‘Paula, tell us more!

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    3. Elvis is a Belgian Shepherd, a bomb-sniffing dog inspired by the military working dogs I met at a Mission K9 Rescue fundraiser. This is an organization that rescues, rehabilitates, and finds forever homes for abandoned military working dogs. It’s a fabulous organization. Susie Bear, a Newfoundland retriever mix, is inspired by our own rescue Bear.

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  14. The Chet and Bernie series features Chet the most amazing dog who is a wonderful companion and smart as a whip. He is my favorite literary dog.

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    1. Yes, but I do want you to meet Elvis and Susie bear! You will fall in love with paula‘s dogs…

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    2. I love Chet, too. I’ve read all those books.
      Chet is full of personality, and I tried to give Elvis and Susie Bear personality too. In my experience, every dog is an individual and every dog has a distinct personality. I try to bring that to life in my book.

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  15. Congratulations, Paula!

    I remember Togo very clearly. Dog in the Longmire books puts me in mind of Dog in the John Wayne movie, "Big Jake." It's too early for me to remember names, but I love dogs in books - especially big ones.

    No surprised that when I wanted to give my protagonist Jim Duncan a dog I gave him a Golden Retriever.

    Mary/Liz

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    1. So funny Mary! I have no memory of that at all!

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    2. Goldens rock! But then you knew that :-)

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    3. If they didn't shed so much and aggravate my husband's allergies, I'd have a Golden, Paula.

      Mary/Liz

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  16. Congratulations Paula! The novel sounds captivating and the dog is a beaut. I have many favorites. Lassie, Belle and Sebastien, Ribsy, WInn Dizie, Nana and so many more of these unforgettable canines whom I adore.

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    1. Nana is one of my favorites, too, because she’s a Newfoundland. Our rescue Bear, the inspiration for Susie Bear in the book, is a Newfoundland retriever mix. They are the loveliest dogs ever.

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  17. I loved this book! And SO happy for Paula. I got to know your beagle in your book/memoir Fixing Freddie. Neither Susie Bear or Elvis bear the slightest resemblance to Freddie. So is there a new dog in your life that you're channeling?

    I did not know Nancy Drew had a dog. Thx, Ann for reminding me of the St. Bernard in Topper. Sigh. Are we dating ourselves or what?

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    1. Yes, :-), Hallie, I fear we do it every day…

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    2. Our beloved curmudgeon Freddie the World’s Worst Beagle died a few months ago. I haven’t been able to talk about it because it was so distressing. He was very old and his time had come but it still breaks my heart. Even though he really was a terrible dog, Kind of like that uncle you have who is such a pain in the butt but you love him anyway. That was our Freddie. Sniff sniff.

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  18. How about Rita Mae Brown? In her Sneaky Pie Brown (a cat) mysteries, all of the animals talk and help their humans solve the mystery. There's a corgi, at least two cats, horses, an owl and other creatures who all converse with each other but not with the humans. In her hunt series, all the hounds, the horses, and even the foxes talk.
    Gosh I loved the Bobbsey Twins!

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    1. You know, so weird… I have never read a Rita Mae Brown!

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    2. I love Sneaky Pie! Rita Mae Brown and Spencer Quinn a.k.a. Peter Abrahams in his Chet and Bernie mysteries, are such geniuses at having the animals talk and/or writing for their POV. That’s a high-wire act I don’t dare try yet.

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    3. Doesn’t Rita Mae Brown have a cat named Baby Jesus?

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    4. I think you’re right. I’m so looking that up!

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  19. Paula, congratulations! Tell us more about how you get into the head of your animals! I know they don’t talk, but you still have to know all about them.

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    1. People keep asking me this question, and I think it’s interesting because honestly I never thought twice about it. I just wrote dogs the way I knew dogs. I grew up with dogs, and dogs were my best friends as a lonely only child and Army brat (12 schools in 11 years!). I always thought of dogs as “real people,” just like I always thought about the characters in books (my other best friends as a child) as “real people” too.
      I guess I was a really weird kid LOL

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  20. I think my first "literary dog" was Joe in the early twentieth century novel, Beautiful Joe. This book is credited for starting the animal protection and anti-cruelty movements in the United States. I still have a copy of this book. Poor Joe is rescued from a man who does a horrific thing to him, and I remember screaming when my mother read that scene out loud to me. She kept saying, "Oh, I didn't know that was coming." Anyway, it was a powerful book in its time, about a family of "rescuers" before "animal rescue" was a "thing." Most of the book is about how horses, dogs and all animals have feelings, and we have a responsibility to protect them. Love it.

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    1. Keziah, that made me laugh. "Oh, I didn't know that was coming." It reminded me of the time we tried to watch the "sweet, family-friendly" MARCH OF THE PENGUINS. Well, a half hour in and one of the eggs rolls out from beneath its dad and lays on the ice. As Morgan Freeman solemnly intones, "The chick inside will freeze in minutes," my Youngest started sobbing. "The baby penguin is going to be okay, right?"

      We turned off the documentary and told her the baby penguin would be fine. We never have seen the rest of the movie.

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    2. I came across the movie, 'Red Dog', and loved it so much, I asked my nephew (then 19) if he wanted to watch it with me. Near the end of the movie, he turns to me accusingly, 'you didn't tell me the dog dies!' with suspicious moisture in his eyes. Oops! But, trust me, the end makes up for it!

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    3. I’m going to have to find Beautiful Joe. Thank you for telling me about it. I still haven’t gotten over Old Yeller. And even Enzo in Garth Stein’s The Art of Racing in Rain made me weep and weep—even though we know from the very beginning Enzo is an old dog who is dying.

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  21. How about Eskay, Tess Monaghan's dog in Laura Lippmann's series?

    How funny, that so many of us don't remember Nancy Drew having a dog. He must not have accompanied her on many adventures.

    Paula, congratulations!

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    1. Thank you!
      As for Nancy Drew, I think they made more of her car than her dog.
      PS: I’ve heard that in the new books she drives a hybrid LOL

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  22. Here I am, another dogloving mystery reader who doesn’t remember anything about Nancy Drew having a dog.

    I like many of the dogs already mentioned. I think Neil, from Topper, is the first TV dog I ever fell in love with, although I was fond of Lassie. (Poor Lassie could never get a moment’s rest!)

    It’s hard to forget about Asta, since her name keeps showing up in crossword puzzles!

    One of my favorite dogs from current mysteries is Spike AKA the Small Evil One, from the Donna Andrews mysteries about Meg Langslow and her quirky family.

    DebRo

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    1. I love Donna Andrews. And who doesn’t love a dog named Spike?

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    2. I believe Tom and Jerry had some issues with a dog named Spike...

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  23. Paula, that is such a great title!

    First, I have to admit that I don't remember Nancy Drew's dog--or the Bobbsey Twins dog! But I do have so many favorite mysteries with dogs in them. I love Susan Conant's malamutes, Rowdy and Kimi. I have all the books in her Holly Winter series and reread them every so often. Reading about Holly's malamutes always makes me think that maybe my German shepherds don't shed so much after all...

    I love James Rollins' Kane in the Tucker Wayne and Kane books, Robert Crais's Maggie in Suspect, and one of my recent favorites is Barbara Nickless's Clyde. I'm looking forward to reading not only Paula's book, but also Margaret Mizushima's Timber Creek K-9 mysteries. And of course, there's Chet--who could not love Chet?

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    1. Thank you. The title comes from a line in a Pablo Neruda poem “life is only a borrowing of bones....”
      Speaking of great titles, I just happen to be reading Garden of Lamentations as we speak. Now THAT’S a great title!
      I love Margaret’s books (and Margaret!), and I love Maggie from Suspect, too. I haven’t read the Barbara Nickless series, I guess that will have to be next. So little time, so many dogs....

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    2. Jen Blood's K-9 books are good, too. Have you come across those?

      And so glad you're liking Garden of Lamentations, even if the dogs don't have a big part in that one:-)

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    3. I did a panel with Margaret at Bouchercon. She's lovely!

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    4. Yes, and her books are great!
      I’ll have to check out Jen Blood’s books, too. Thanks!

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    5. Barbara Nickless is FABULOUS. A true talent. And a wonderful person.

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  24. I forgot Dana Stabenow's Mutt! Now how could I have forgotten her?

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    1. Who doesn’t love a dog named Mutt? Gotta check that out....

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  25. Congrats on the book, Paula! Is there a breed of dog that you would love to write about? Or a breed that you would never include in a book?

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    1. I can’t imagine any kind of dog I wouldn’t want to write about. Or rescue LOL
      Although lately we tend to end up with mixed breeds, which is just fine. When we adopted Bear, a rescue from Alabama, we adopted him sight unseen, and all we knew about him was that he needed a home and that he was part Newfoundland, part retriever. We just assumed that he would be the size of the retriever and have the placid nature of the Newfoundland. But it didn’t quite work out that way, Bear is big at 90-plus pounds, and has energy to spare. But he is, as our vet likes to say, The Happiest Dog in the World.

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    2. Paula, what a great description of Bear! I've never met a Newf I didn't like--and if he's a happy dog, that just shows he knows he's loved!

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    3. He had a rough time before we got him, He showed up with half his upper teeth missing, a fractured skull, etc. Old injuries but our vet removed the roots left from the missing teeth just in case. He’s fine now, And you’d never know anything bad ever happened to him. He’s a totally Zen dog living in the moment!

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  26. Thanks, Paula, for the trip down memory lane with the dogs. For me, I'd have to add Ribsy, too, Henry Huggins' dog from the Beverly Cleary series. I know it wasn't a mystery series, but I loved that scruffy looking mutt. And, then the dog of my mystery dreams came along in The Hound of the Baskervilles, deliciously scary.

    I have recently become interested again in dogs being front and center in stories. Jen Danna and Ann Vanderlaan have merged their talents into the name of Sara Driscoll to write the F.B.I. K-9 series, and I'm really enjoying it. So, when I learned of your debut mystery, A Borrowing of Bones, and its two wonderful dogs, Paula, I knew it had to go on my TBR and wish lists. I've gotten behind, with pre-Bouchercon reading and Bouchercon and being sick for a week after, but A Borrowing of Bones is still in my short pile of TBR. I especially like the Newfoundland mix dog in your new series, as my daughter had a Newfoundland named Hank, who was beautiful and smart, but tragically died way too soon. When my younger granddaughter ran off from her mother at their home in the country to explore (these things happen in the blink of an eye, you know), Hank found her by the pond and held onto her top until my daughter got there to scoop her up.

    So, congratulations, Paula. I think this series will be a great success.

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    1. Thank you so much for the kind words.
      I’m not surprised your Newfoundland saved your granddaughter. They are such good swimmers, and so protective. Bear loves to go with us in our tandem kayak, And he’ll ride on the paddleboard with me as well. Gives me a great workout, since he adds nearly 100 pounds.
      PS: I loved all of Beverly Cleary and especially that dog!

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  27. Oh, dogs! Love 'em. First dog I remember was Spot in the Dick and Jane books. Tip was another one; he was a terrier and acted accordingly. Asta. It intrigued me that he was a giant schnauzer in the books and a pesky fox terrier in the movies. I love Harry the Dirty Dog in children's books. And what is the name of the big, wise dog in the Richard Jury books? He belongs to a musician. Carolyn Haines has Sweetie Pie and Chablis in her Sarah Booth Delaney books. As for TV dogs, of course there is Neil the ghost dog who loved his brandy. And Cleo the basset hound in The People's Choice. Anyone remember her? And Old Yeller. I still can't watch that movie.

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    1. PatD, that's Stone, another Martha Grimes' character that I adore--especially because he's a dog!

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    2. I love Carolyn Haines and all her work. She really walks the talk, running an animal rescue in addition to writing. She’s my hero!

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  28. Our 16-year old Pug, Pep, is more of a reader than an action dog, but I have just discovered and am thoroughly enjoying the Gideon and Sirius novels by Alan Russell. And I really wanted to be a Bobbsey Twin, too - Nan!

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    1. At 16, Pep has earned her reading days :-)
      I’ll have to read those Alan Russell books...my TBR list is wicked high after this Jungle Red chat about literary dogs!

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    2. Yes, Pep is kicking back and taking it easy now.
      Jungle Red always adds to my TBR but totally worth it. Sirius in the Alan Russell series sounds a lot like Elvis - brave, fearless, devoted. Definitely have A Borrowing of Bones on the TBR now.

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    3. Sweet! And I’ll check out Sirius.

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  29. I'm a blank of book dogs, but know they're great additions. (I don'y work well under pressure. "What's your phone number?" "Uh, let me think...no that's not it.....")
    libbydodd at comcast dot ent

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  30. Not a mystery but Dan and Ann from Where the Red Fern Grows - Ugh, that book killed me. Congrats on the new release, Paula! I love my crime with a side of canine and can't wait to read your work!

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    1. Thanks so much! I loved Where the Red Fern Grows, but I could only read it once.

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  31. You know--our Irish Setter Penny, a million years ago, saved my sister Liz. Pre-teen Liz was out horseback riding after sunset, absolutely forbidden, and tried to ride across a road. A car was zooming toward her. Liz didn't notice, but Penny did, and leaped out to stop the car. Which of course, she did, but not without sacrificing herself to do it.

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    1. Oh that’s such a heartbreaking story. But so typical of the courage and loyalty of dogs. Our rescue Shakespeare woke me up in the middle of the night to let me know that the kitchen was on fire. We all got out safely including Shakespeare. And he lived a long time after that, but he is still so missed. May he rest in peace. Best dog ever.

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  32. Congratulations, Paula! You are a new to me author. Among favorite literary dogs are Jook in Winspear's Maisie Dobbs series, the assistance dog in the Janet Finsilver series Redwood Cove series, the adorable dogs in Krista Davis' Paws and Claws cozy mystery series, among others.

    Diana

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    1. Oooh, I love Jook, too. The Maisie Dobbs series is great. I’ll have to check out Redwood Cove. And who could resist Paws and Claws? We are a dog and cat family 🐶🐱

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  33. I just remembered another favorite dog. Kate Collins's Abby Knight Flower Shop mysteries feature an ugly little dog she can't resist, a rescue pup named Seedy.

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  34. Ugly dogs are great. My son rescued a little terrier mix named Terri (I know, I know) who’s so ugly she’s cute. A very lively little dog who think Bear is, well, a bear 🐻

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  35. I really like T Tucker, the Corgi in Rita Mae Brown's Sneaky Pie mysteries.🐶🐕

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    1. YOU WIN!! Please email me at hryan at whdh dot com and I will send you A BORROWING OF BONES! YAY!

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  36. Corgis are such adorable little dogs with big personalities. My daughter had one named Corky when she was little and she was a corker! Fearless and friendly—unless you were the UPS guy.

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  37. I love Socrates & Artie from Bethany Blake's Lucky Paws Petsitting Mysteries. They have such great personalities.

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  38. And the winner is: Diane Casey! YAY! Just email me your address via hryan at whdh dot com and I will send you A BORROWING OF BONES!

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