A furry friend's work is never done—just ask Marley and Dewey. First, each starred in a heartwarming memoir, Marley and Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog and Dewey: The Small-Town Library Cat Who Touched the World, which had major runs on national bestseller lists. Then both properties spun off children's books, followed by movies with marquee names: Marley and Me in 2008 featured Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson, and the film version of Dewey's story, starring Meryl Streep as the feline's librarian savior, is in the works. It's not surprising that those wildly successful titles continue to inspire an entire genre of pet memoirs.
Or, as Hyperion executive editor Brenda Copeland puts it, “Books on animals have changed a lot since Erick Knight's Lassie became a household name in 1938.” Her popularity, notes Copeland, seems to have been all but eclipsed when Marley bounded onto the scene. “Some very fine dogoirs have been published since then, all of them exploring the complex and intense relationship between dogs and their human companions. It wasn't long before the popularity of dog books opened the category for other animals.”
Last October, Delacorte editor Caitlin Alexander acquired Gwen Cooper's memoir, Homer's Odyssey, about a sightless cat and the changes he wrought on the life of the author who adopted him. The title made the New York Times bestseller list the week it went on sale. Says Alexander, “I think these kinds of memoirs are perennial favorites, because they tap into the reasons why animals are so important in our lives. But at the same time, for a book to work it has to be more than just a cute animal story. It has to offer some new insights about the animals and ourselves.”
Big-name authors are getting into the pet memoir act, too. Last month, Hyperion published Dean Koontz's A Big Little Life, the story of his relationship with his late golden retriever, Trixie. (Trixie had become quite the author herself—first through contributions to Koontz's blog, and then with Hyperion's publication last fall of Bliss to You: Trixie's Guide to a Happy Life.) A Big Little Life made both PW's and the New York Times lists. In October, Ballantine will publish Rita Mae Brown's Animal Magnetism: My Life with Creatures Great and Small, a companion book to the popular mystery series Brown “coauthors” with her feline pal Sneaky Pie Brown. Senior editor Danielle Perez says, “Readers are searching for authentic stories, and the relationship and love between humans and animals is incredibly authentic.”
But why are these books so popular that they appear bulletproof even in a down market? Says Grand Central associate publisher Les Pockell, “You might as well ask why love stories are so popular—they are something virtually everyone has an interest in, and a subject about which an infinite number of stories can be told.” Houghton Mifflin Harcourt executive editor Susan Canavan says the weakened economy is actually helping: “People are starved for these stories. Pets offer this comfort that they're not getting elsewhere.”
An October release from St. Martin's touches several bases: Saving Cinnamon: The Amazing True Story of a Missing Military Puppy and the Desperate Mission to Bring Her Home. SMP editor Daniela Rapp agrees that interest in pet memoirs runs high and notes that the definition of pets is expanding beyond dogs and cats “to include more than just your regular domestic pets.” Rapp has seen manuscript submissions about human relationships with birds, lions, elephants and other wild animals. Earlier this month, Harper published the trade paper edition of Irene Pepperberg's Alex & Me: How a Scientist and a Parrot Discovered a Hidden World of Animal Intelligence—and Formed a Deep Bond in the Process.
And New World Library is hoping that equines are the new canines as it prepares to publish Beyond the Homestretch, about author Lynn Reardon finding new homes for more than 700 retired racehorses. Senior editor Jason Gardner says, “Our animal titles focus on what we can learn from animals when we re-evaluate our relationship with them. And Lynn's book really does that—describing what happens when you find new lives for these beautiful athletes that have been used in a rough, literally high stakes business.”
Shaye Areheart, publisher of Shaye Areheart and Harmony Books, sees no sign of the trend abating. “People have become increasingly aware of the ways in which our planet is changing,” she says, “and as a result they are paying more attention than ever to animals and the wisdom they have to offer. What can dogs tell us about who we are and about the nature of loyalty and trust? How can animals offer lessons in empathy that can help us create a kinder, better world?”
Post-Marley and Dewey, memoirs tend to overshadow this category's meat and potatoes (or is that kibble and biscuits?)— practical guides. Publishers are treading cautiously with guides, though this fall will see new entries in the breed-focused Dog Bible series from Barron's as well as stand-alones like Nicole Röder's Whose Sofa Is It Anyway? and You Can Train Your Cat by fourth-generation circus performer Gregory Popovich. Still, SMP's Rapp cautions, “The practical shelf is full to bursting.”
As in every category, a TV platform virtually guarantees sales. In October, Harmony will publish the latest from the National Geographic Channel's “dog whisperer” Cesar Millan, How to Raise the Perfect Dog: Through Puppyhood and Beyond. This month, Three Rivers reprints Millan's A Member of the Family: The Ultimate Guide to Living with a Happy, Healthy Dog.
And pet spending forecasts are promising: the American Pet Products Association reports Americans spent $43.2 billion on their pets in 2008 and expects that figure to rise to $45.4 billion in 2009. Rochelle Bourgault, acquisitions editor at Quarry Books, says, “Despite the recession, the pet industry's sales are up—this demonstrates that though we may not feel confident enough in our finances to take that 10-day trek through Malaysia this year, we can afford to treat our animals to good food, fun gear and even a massage or two.”
Barron's marketing director, Lonny Stein, says that the outlets that sell these books are changing, though, and publishers must keep up. “The pet book market remains stable, but the distribution channel has evolved over the last few years as mom-and-pop and independent pet stores continue to lose market share to national chains like PetSmart and Petco.” He notes too that, possibly due to the low cost involved in caring for them, small “pocket animals,” such as guinea pigs and hamsters, are gaining in popularity. These and many more furred and feathered friends are covered in the publisher's 32-page “Pet Books 2009” catalogue.
But in terms of the number of titles, dogs still rule. Christopher T. Reggio, publisher of TFH Publications, which publishes a large number of canine titles, like Dog University: A Training Program to Develop Advanced Skills with Your Dog, says, “The number of cats in family homes—82 million—has dominated the number of dogs—72 million—yet this year's selection of a dog as First Pet by the Obama family generated even greater interest in dogs as family pets.” (As in past years, cat numbers are higher since many homes have multiple kitties.)
Man's Fictional Best Friends
In a 1985 New York Times Book Review essay, “Freedom, Necessity and Dogs I Have Known,” Leigh Hafrey wrote that the books that had most shaped him were “dog books [such as Jack London's White Fang], which I read from about my seventh to my 10th birthdays.”
Hafrey must be contentedly reliving his childhood these days, with canines popping up on fiction bestseller lists more and more frequently. Garth Stein's The Art of Racing in the Rain, narrated by a unique pooch named Enzo, has sat on PW's trade paperback list for 14 weeks. David Wroblewski's The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, the widely lauded, Wisconsin-set Hamlet update about dog breeders, was an Oprah pick; Tom Hanks is developing a film based on the novel. (And Ecco has just published the trade paper edition.)
Rapp at St. Martin's says, “Much of the popularity of animal nonfiction has spilled over into commercial and literary fiction—mostly featuring dogs as prominent characters the reader can identify and fall in love with.” In March 2010, SMP will publish 100,000 copies of Susan Wilson's One Good Dog, narrated in part by a pooch. And Grand Central recently published New Tricks, the seventh in a series of mysteries by David Rosenfelt featuring Andy Carpenter, a New Jersey defense attorney who, Pockell says, “has always had an attachment to his beloved golden retriever, Tara, but in the last two books, dogs have played a central role in the plot.” New Tricks, he says, features a Bernese mountain dog and a scheme involving synthetic DNA.
It's a long way from White Fang.
All-Natural Dogs and Cats
According to the U.S. Humane Society, dog owners spend an average of $219 annually on veterinary expenses; cat owners $175 on average. And just as humans are turning increasingly to natural remedies and dietary solutions for their own health problems, they are looking in those directions for their pets as well.
Claire Eddy, senior editor at Forge Books, says, “There is a growing concern for how contemporary medicine has failed on a core level, treating a patient's symptoms rather than looking at that patient as an organic whole. Having taken control of our medical destinies, people are now looking out for the creatures that we have taken into our homes—and into our hearts.” In August, Forge published the paperback original Unexpected Miracles: Hope and Holistic Healing for Pets. Special promotions will run through dog clubs, which have their own newsletters and Web sites, and some specialized holistic pet care retailers are carrying the title.
Bourgault at Quarry Books says, “As consumers' interest in complementary and alternative medicine, sustainable practices and green lifestyle choices grows, so does their interest in applying the same principles to their pets.” Coming next month from Quarry: The Complete Guide to Holistic Cat Care. And in November, Ten Speed Press will publish The New Holistic Way for Dogs and Cats: The Stress-Health Connection. Says senior editor Veronica Randall, “We think our readers understand that what's good for them (fresh food, regular exercise, reduced stress, meaningful work and healthy relationships) is also good for the animals in their lives. And what isn't good for people can't be good for their pets. Thus we will continue to publish pet care books with this sensibility—a sensibility that we believe transcends fads and the vagaries of the economy.”
Marion Nestle, whose What to Eat is one of the bedrock books on human nutrition, has written, with coauthor and animal nutrition expert Malden Nesheim, Feed Your Pet Right, coming in May 2010 from the Free Press. In the words of senior editor Leslie Meredith, “Many pet owners—from breeders and people who show dogs and cats to nonprofessionals and families—pay more attention to what their dogs and cats eat than they do to their own diets, and they go to great lengths to find healthful foods for their beloved four-legged family members, including cooking for them, searching out organic ingredients, finding special diets for pets' sensitive stomachs and allergies.”
“People who are passionate about cooking and baking share a love for creating something delicious, and for nurturing others with that food,” says Sterling Innovation editorial director Pamela Horn. “As true members of the family, dogs deserve the same love, comfort and care as humans.” Next month's Chow Hound by Eve Adamson will feature recipes for cheeseburger muffins and beefy barley bars.
Whether we're feeding them treats or simply loving them, Canavan at HMH says, “there's a reason we are drawn to animals, their worlds and their stories. Not surprisingly, the books in this category, whether prescriptive or narrative, whether fact-driven or from the heart, share one thing: they remind us that our basic needs in life are not really different—and certainly no less attainable—than those of our animal friends.”
For a list of titles mentioned in this feature, go to www.publishersweekly.com/petbooks.
