Marley and Me
Thursday, July 24, 2008
Houston, we have a cover!
As I described in my last entry, my new memoir, "The Longest Trip Home," is coming out on Oct. 21. Things are clicking along rapidly now on the road to publication, and just last week we settled on a cover. I thought I'd share it with you and ask your opinion. It's hard to tell from this jpeg, but the green will be a rich matte finish, and the black-and-white photo will be glossy. The gold type is embossed foil, which really looks sharp on the flat green, I think.
Anyway, here it is, the official cover of The Longest Trip Home. I'm thrilled with it. Kudos to the art department at William Morrow, my publisher. And yes, that little kid in the photo is yours truly, on the floor of my childhood home, in 1959 when I was 2 years old. Man, did I love that cowboy shirt!
By the way, please know that I read every single message left here on my blog. I can't respond to them all, but I do read them and really enjoy what all of you have to say. Whether you are writing from the next town over or from Brazil or Japan or Italy or Australia, I love hearing from you. Thanks for all the messages!
-- John
posted by John Grogan at 8:53 AM
6 comments
 
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
My new book: The Longest Trip Home
I'm a little superstitious when it comes to my writing, preferring not to talk about projects until they are finished lest I somehow jinx them and they never get done at all, leaving me with egg on my face. Which is another way of saying that, even though I barely mentioned it on this blog or anywhere else, I have been very, very busy for the past 15 months.
I've been busy writing my next book, which is titled The Longest Trip Home. And now I am happy -- overjoyed! -- to talk about it because it is completed and in the able hands of my North American publisher William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, and in the equally able hands of my United Kingdom publisher, Hodder and Stoughton. The book is scheduled for release in the U.S. and Canada October 21 -- less than four months away! -- and shortly after in the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.
The Longest Trip Home is the story I knew even before Marley & Me came out was the one I wanted to tell next, the one bubbling up inside me, trying to get out. Once again, I found my inspiration in the true story of my own life. Already, it is being dubbed a "prequel" to Marley & Me, and in a sense it is because it tells the story that came first. Before there was Marley, there was a gleefully mischievous little boy -- that would be me -- growing up in a warm and loving but comically over-the-top Catholic family. We had crucifixes and Virgin Mary statues in every room of the house, holy water in the medicine cabinet, and rosaries on every bedstand. We even took family vacations to religious miracle sites. The more I tried to meet my devout parents' expectations and be a good Catholic boy, the more things seemed to go awry. Sometimes in very big ways. Yes, I now know I was responsible for more than a few of their gray hairs.
But the book is not just a childhood memoir. It is a story of growing up, and then of breaking away as a young adult to stake out my own orbit in this universe. And finally, it is a story of finding the way back home again before it is too late.
The William Morrow press release announcing the October 21 publication date described "The Longest Trip Home" this way:
"Written with the same trademark blend of humor and pathos that was embraced by millions worldwide in his beloved Marley & Me, John Grogan traces the universal journey we all take as sons and daughters to find our place in the world. It is the powerful, often hilarious story of a son in the making, and of growing up in a loving, but comically old-school Catholic family. From his troublemaking childhood to his courtship of a fiery blond named Jenny, Grogan writes about how he came to terms with who he is and what he believes."
The publisher's announcement predicts that The Longest Trip Home "will resonate across generations, from those beginning life’s voyage, to those facing journey’s end, and especially those in between." And I sure hope they're right. I do know that whenever I talk about the life voyages we make as sons and daughters, parents and children, and husbands and wives, everyone has a story to share, and many of the passages are surprisingly similar, at once funny and painful and heartfelt. Once the book is out, I look forward to the dialogue with readers that is sure to follow. That's my favorite part of writing books -- the back and forth and honest conversation with readers who can relate my experience to their own.
Now that my book is done and racing toward its October 21 publication date, you will hear me talking a lot more about it. This is a story that means a great deal to me personally, and one that I am very proud of. I can't wait to share it with each of you.
And before signing off, let me invite each of you to sign up for the HarperCollins Author Tracker service, which will keep you in the loop, by email, on the new book and my public appearances, as well as all things Marley. You can sign up by typing your email address in the little window at the bottom of my marleyandme.com home page. That's all there is to it.
Over and out for now.
*******
From The Associated Press on June 24:
New book coming from `Marley & Me' author
NEW YORK (AP) — "Marley & Me" author John Grogan is working on a prequel to the million-selling memoir about his dog.
"The Longest Trip Home" will be released in October by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins, the publisher said in a statement Tuesday.
"It is the powerful, often hilarious story of a son in the making, and of growing up in a loving, but comically old-school Catholic family," said the statement issued by Morrow. "From his troublemaking childhood to his courtship of a fiery blonde named Jenny, Grogan writes about how he came to terms with who he is and what he believes."
"Even before `Marley & Me' was published, I knew this was the story I wanted to tell next," Grogan, 51, said in a statement. "`The Longest Trip Home' is a story very close to my heart."
A film version of "Marley & Me," starring Owen Wilson and Jennifer Aniston, is slated for release in December.
From Publisher's Weekly:
William Morrow Announces New Grogan Memoir
By Rachel Deahl -- Publishers Weekly, 6/24/2008 9:57:00 AM
Before he was the owner of a lovable Lab named Marley, John Grogan was a trouble-making teen in a traditional Catholic family. Those formative years are the subject of the newspaper columnist's new memoir, The Longest Trip Home. Publisher William Morrow, which announced the book today, dubbed the title a "prequel" to Grogan's smash hit about the family dog (Marley & Me); Longest Trip is scheduled for an international laydown on October 21, 2008.
Morrow acquired North American rights from Laurie Abkemeier in association with DeFiore and Company. Speaking to the book, one which Grogan said he always intended to do after Marley & Me, Morrow executive editor Mauro DiPreta said it's a "rich, funny and moving reading experience that touches on themes that are close to all of us: love, family, faith and identity."
According to HarperCollins there are nearly 4 million copies of Marley & Me in print. And, given the successful adaptations the book has spawned in the children's market—a picture book and a middle grade title—the publisher plans to synchronize publicity for The Longest Trip Home with the September-slated A Very Marley Christmas. The push of both books will lead up to the Christmas Day release of the film version of Marley & Me, starring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson.
posted by John Grogan at 9:16 AM
31 comments
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Gracie Meets Woodson
As I described in the previous entry, we have a new pup in our home. Woodson continues to channel the spirit of Marley as he races through our house, grabbing anything and everything he can get his teeth around. We need to watch the little scamp constantly, and he has forced us to turn our countertops into barren, food-free zones, lest the little counter-surfer-in-training strike again. Just this morning, I washed fresh fruit and put it in a bowl on the table. I turned away for about 45 seconds, and when I returned there was Woodson on the rug happily gnawing away on.... a nectarine! Like Marley with his mangoes, the dog sure loves his fruit and fiber.
He was 26 pounds when we brought him home last month. This weekend at the vet (and that's a whole other story that has to do with the mangled remains of a CD jewel case) he weighed in at 39 pounds. The Ghost of Marley is growing at an alarming rate. He just might end up looking like Clifford.
At any rate, I wanted to share the photo of Woodson's first meeting with our normally calm and collected female Lab, Gracie. As you can see, they were both a little worked up. I love the crazed look in both of their eyes. If there is ever a remake of Kujo, they're shoo-ins. After the initial high-voltage encounter, though, they've settled into a friendly relationship that involves a lot of tail biting, limb nibbling, neck-scruff tugging and other playful behavior. I need to give Gracie her chops. If it were me on the receiving end of all that puppy-dog comportment, I would have snapped by now.
posted by John Grogan at 6:22 AM
17 comments
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