Howl: A Collection of the Best Contemporary Dog Wit

The second literary salvo from The Bark magazine (after Dog is my Co-Pilot), a mostly-miss compendium of dog-related scribblings, opens with a spectacularly unfunny standup routine performed by a dog named Gracie. The schtick, by essayist Bonnie Thomas Abbott, is cliche-ridden enough almost to put readers off dogs for good. Alice Elliott Dark's ponderous attempted satire of the James Frey debacle, related here as the dog Raw Bone's memoir A Million Little Reeses, is so cringe-inducing the reader is actually embarrassed for the author. Those with fortitude will be rewarded, albeit sparingly. Marc Spitz's essay on how his dog changed his life, riddled with pop culture references and self-deprecating humor, is truly a joy. Kinky Friedman's all-too-short piece on the trials and tribulations of sharing a bed with animals will have dog lovers smiling and nodding in recognition, and Nancy Cohen's ""The Seven Month Itch"" masterfully incorporates the multitude of nicknames owners have for their companions in a story about the search for the cure for a rash. Unfortunately, the gems are all too few.