Bark magazine sends up riotous Howl

2 comments | Leave your own comment

When the husband-and-wife team who run Bark magazine came out with their first collection of essays about dogs, they didn't have to wait long for an audience. Dog is My Copilot was featured on NPR's Morning Edition and that same afternoon the book climbed out of oblivion to reach number three on Amazon's list of daily best-sellers.

Four years later, an estimated 80,000 to 90,000 books have been sold, making it among the first of a recent spate of dog titles to thrill publishers. Another one, Marley & Me: A Dog Like No Other (2005), was so successful, with more than 2.5 million books sold thus far, it has guaranteed the world will never run short of new dog books. (See DogTime's recommended dog gift books.)

"People like to see themselves reflected in what they're reading," says Kawczynska, in explaining the broad appeal of dog books. "They like to read stories that focus on the incredible bond between human and dog, and they can't get enough of it when it's well written."

Dog people have their say

Kawcynzka and Woo's most recent book is betting that same winning formula will propel sales of their newest book. Howl, a collection of the best contemporary dog wit, debuted in October and contributors include Al Franken, Margaret Cho, Erica Jong, and other well-respected comics and writers with a soft spot for dogs. "These are all dog people," says Kawcznska, "not dog writers." But none of them had any trouble writing about what she calls their "daily muse."

"Dogs are important part of people's lives," she says, "You generally don't share your day to day life with a human. It's your dog who stays with you. It's your dog who won't interrupt your train of thought."

Celebrating 10 years of dog

About one quarter of the essays originally appeared in Bark, the award-winning Berkeley, California- based magazine started by Kawcynska and Woo 10 years ago. In January, Bark starts a year long review of the most important dog-related issues to emerge over the past decade, among them that more people than ever are taking the time to train their dogs, cook for them, and take them on outings rather than leave them at home--none of which would surprise today's rapidly growing population of dog enthusiasts.

Kawcynska and Woo, who've been married 15 years, joined that crowd when they adopted Nellie, a spaniel mix, and it  [Continued]

Your name:

Your email:

Recipient's email: OK to enter multiple addresses
separated by commas

Message: Check out what I found on DogTime.com!

And, for spam prevention...

Incorrect please try again

Enter the words above: Enter the numbers you hear:

Try another one | Try audio instead Try text instead | Help

Sending....please wait.