Marley and Me

I just finished listening to John Grogan's book Marley and Me. Most times, I don't enjoy having an author read their own book. Grogan's voice didn't match what I had in my head, so it took me awhile to come around. It is a true story of a dog's lifetime with his owners and all of the adventures that they go through, Marly and Me is a true story that will be familiar to dog owners past and present. My librarian warned me that he wasn't able to finish the book, due to the end that he knew was coming, but I made it through to the end. It made my errand running enjoyable and now I know the difference between which types of retrievers are good for families and which are difficult to handle. Which is great to know as Chris has been vying for a dog like this for as long as I can remember knowing him.

So what does all of this have to do with infertility or fertility? As always, I'm surprised when fertility issues pop up when I'm not expecting them in a book. And this wasn't an exception. Grogan describes how Marley helped his wife, Jenny and himself, John, recover from their grief of miscarrying. This was one of the parts in the book where I felt tears coming on. And then later on, how Marley adds into the chaos of parenting and being part of a family.

I have a friend who has miscarried twice this year which, of course, left her devastated and almost numb. I am hesitant to recommend this book to her for the double whammys of loss that the book describes. She owns a beautiful dog as well. But, I will eventually recommend it to her, and warn her as well. As I'm warning all of you right now.