Review by Pam Marr Rybinski
The title of this tale by the Emmy Award-nominated writer Martin Kihn hints at the dichotomy of the plot line. Hola, a Bernese Mountain Dog, has severe behavioral issues. So does Marty, her human cohort. The combination of Hola’s aggressive behavior plus Marty’s total lack of leadership effectively forces Marty’s wife, Gloria, completely out of their lives. From that point on, their lives fall to ruin. Soon all they have is each other. Hola functions as Marty’s back-up narrator, her thoughts rendered in italics. Hola and Marty’s mutual love and their desperate desire to improve drive them to a quest for the American Kennel Club’s “Canine Good Citizen” certificate, a seemingly “impossible” task. On its way to conclusion, Kihn’s book deals with breed characteristics, human foibles, and even tosses in a valuable caveat about buying a puppy from a breeder of purebred dogs.
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