Read this book

I love to read. And while there are many books that I've enjoyed over the years, I think I've finally found the one that may very well claim the prize of my favorite book of all time.

The little tale (or perhaps more appropriately, large tail) in question is called Marley & Me: Life and Love with the World's Worst Dog. In it, newspaper reporter John Grogan details the story of his newlywed days when he and his wife decided to get a dog as a test before having children.

While I'm only a few chapters into it, I already connect with the book on many levels. First, I'm still a newlywed myself, and second, Grogan and his wife are both reporters like my husband and I were when we first married. (Yes, I realize I'm no longer a reporter, but my wonderful husband still is... Although he prefers the term journalist.)

But more than anything else, I truly believe this book could very well be about Buddy, my 115 lb. Labrador Retriever who resides with my parents. Grogan's story of picking Marley from the litter mimics our selection of Buddy. And much like the Grogans, we didn't know quite what we were in for either.

So if you grew up with a dog, ever thought about getting a dog, or maybe passed by a dog on the street one day, this book is a must-read. It's already racing up the charts so don't get left behind.

Plus, unlike Oprah's book recommendations, I can pretty much guarantee this one's a true story.

By the way, once you're on a reading kick with dog books, I have a few more to recommend:

Amazing Gracie: A Dog's Tale by Dan Dye and Mark Beckloff
Timbuktu: A Novel by Paul Auster

I have a copy of each of these three books somewhere and I'll loan them out if anyone wants to borrow them. I just have to figure out what I did with them first.