The Puppy Diaries: Raising a Dog Named Scout

Abramson, executive editor of the New York Times, is a tough-minded investigative journalist with a soft spot for cuddly pups. In this book, based on her popular Times blog, she chronicles her first year with her new puppy, Scout, and shares what she learns about doggie nutrition, training, socialization, and even pet health insurance. When her husband, Henry, falls in love with a friend’s British standard retriever and persuades her to get a puppy from the friend’s breeder, Abramson, still grieving the loss of her beloved Westie, Buddy, is reluctant. But by the time they’ve gotten home with Scout, Abramson has already begun to dote on her. An empty nester with two grown children, she delights in bonding with other dog owners at the dog park, fretting over Scout’s graduation from puppy kindergarten, and pampering her with trips to doggy day care or to a pool for pooches in their Tribeca neighborhood. As Scout romps toward canine “adolescence,” chomping through shoes, spectacles, and table legs with pin-sharp teeth and dragging her owners along by the leash, Abramson consults with dog authorities like Cesar Millan of The Dog Whisperer, clicker-training and positive-reinforcement proponent Diane Abbott, and animal behaviorist Temple Grandin. Though not all might have such envious resources, puppy owners will enjoy her account of the trials and joys of raising a puppy and will benefit from her balanced look into the contentious realm of dog-training methods. (Oct.)