John Grogan

il'ilf if'i mmimimmm '.1 ;if: On the moriung of the big Easter egg hunt, Main Street hummed as people made their way to the town square. Friends and families strolled down the street together, chatting and laughing. Everyone, it seemed, was happy to join in the fun.

The Perfect Dog «1» n the summer of 1967, when I was ten years old, my father caved in to my persistent pleas and took me to get my own dog. Together we drove in the family station wagon far into the Michigan countryside to a farm run by a rough-hewn woman and her ancient mother. The farm...