Bad to the Bone: Memoir of a Rebel Doggie Blogger [Paperback]

Bo Hoefinger (Author)

Book Description

Release date: September 29, 2009

Let's get this clear right away: I'm a dog. I'm 1'10" and weigh 63 lbs, and although I'm a mutt on the outside, I'm a purebred on the inside. My good nature comes from the Golden Retriever side of the family, while my stubbornness is clearly from my Chowchow bloodlines. I've got Rastafarian ears, a black tongue for licking, and paws that should be on a dog twice my size.

I type 60 words a minute.

My name is Bo, and this is my story.

From shelter dog reject to beloved pet and popular doggie blogger, Bo Hoefinger's life has been anything but ordinary. Join this incorrigible canine as he welcomes us into his life, complete with his wacky "parents," a constipated feline housemate, and chipmunk warfare.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Witty commentary and hilarious observations."--Dog Living Magazine

"A real treat. Bo is so distinctively adorable and funny, that no other dog will be able to follow in his pawsteps."--Tracie Hotchner, author of The Dog Bible and host of DOG TALK (NPR affiliate WLIU-FM 88.3 radio show)

"You'll laugh, you'll howl, you'll practically wag with pleasure. . .Bo is truly the voice of his doggy generation."--Dr. Marty Becker, Resident veterinarian on ABC TV's Good Morning America, Host of "The Pet Doctor with Marty Becker" on PBS, Author of 17 pet books, Nationally syndicated columnist, and Co-creator of petconnection.com

"A well-written and fun read. . .Bo takes you inside his family and you feel as if you're right there experiencing all the joys and pains with them. You'll want to hug your own dog after reading this book!"--Suzanne Jalot, Editor-In-Chief of DOGliving magazine

"Bo's rebel adventures in naps and squirrels will stir the heart and stoke human understanding of how dogs must think. His "voice" is utterly original, sharp, and kind."--Monica Collins, "Ask Dog Lady" columnist, askdoglady.com

"A funny, funny book giving the reader a hilarious insight into what might be in a dog's mind as he is given orders by his owners. Throughout the book, Bo continually displays his intellectual superiority when he is listening to his "Mother" and "Father" as he refers to them. His innocent explanations about how he constantly outfoxes them will have you giggling. Hilarious from beginning to end. This book will leave you chuckling to yourself and marveling at the cleverness of the author and Bo." --From Barbara Vey's Publishers Weekly Book Blog

Get honest, engaging, and hilarious insight into the inner life of a dog through the eyes of Bo, once a shelter-reject and now, a beloved family pet. --Modern Dog Magazine

Bad to the Bone: Memoir of a Rebel Doggie Blogger (Citadel Press, 2009) draws on Bo's experiences to paint a sympathetic, sweet, and kind portrait of an American family from the ground up, unfolding into an absorbing story of love, friendship, and loyalty. Written in a voice strong enough to make it easy to forget that this book wasn't actually written by a dog, this story brings humor and perspective to everyday life. Very easy to read and hilarious! --Melissa Barr

Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Citadel Press; Original edition (September 29, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806531290
• ISBN-13: 978-0806531298
• Product Dimensions: 0.7 x 6 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (61 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,066,361 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Let's get this clear right away: I'm a dog.

I'm 1'10" and weigh 63 lbs, and although I'm a mutt on the outside, I'm a purebred on the inside. My good nature comes from the Golden Retriever side of the family, while my stubbornness is clearly from my Chowchow bloodlines. I've got Rastafarian ears, a black tongue for licking, and paws that should be on a dog twice my size.

I type 60 words a minute.

From shelter dog reject to beloved pet and popular doggie blogger, my life has been anything but ordinary.

My popular blog, www.BoKnowsOnline.com, receives up to 100,000 page views per month. I am also the dog behind the writer chosen as the "doggie blogger" for Dogster.com, which has a membership of more than 500,000.

A frequent contributor to local fence post 12, I dedicate the majority of my waking hours in support of the local nonprofit "Beneath the Fence" society. In my spare time I dabble in knocking over garbage pails, barking uncontrollably, and generally being a helpful force around the house.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Absolutely Hysterical! October 7, 2009

By Laura

Format:Paperback

If you have a sense of humor and a fondness for man's best friend then this is a must read. I was literally laughing out loud as I read it. I have never done that before. Great gift idea!

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The FUNNIEST book by a dog I ever read!! October 10, 2009

By Nancy Houser

Format:Paperback

The book Bad to the Bone: Memoir of a Rebel Doggie Blogger has to be one of the funniest and most original books I have ever read. Where else can you spend hours laughing at a sneak-peak before sending a friend/family doggie-lover one of the most unique gifts they will ever have? In that case, you may have to order two --- one for you and one as a gift!

Written by a "one-time" reject shelter dog who has his own blog online now ([...]) which is also hilariously funny....Bo tells it as he sees it. Coming from the school of hard-knocks, Bo is adopted by the Hoefingers and teaches them to care for him .... properly! And when they end up moving to Georgia, their list of pros and cons did not have Bo's name on it, nor his best cat friend, Moose.

"My parents never considered the vast amount of land in our backyard I'd be giving up or the clear alpa dog stature I had achieved in the neighborhood. Nor was the fact considered what effect the sultry Southern weather would have on an extremely hairy dog. Nope, none of that mattered. This decision was ALL about them."

Instead, Bo's mother goes to the store and rents the movie "Gone with the Wind" prior to going house-hunting after they had moved to Georgia.....I tell no lies. This was done in order to forewarn Bo about their new living quarters so he would not be disappointed about where they would soon be living. This is just one of the many side-splitting moments in the book!

Buying this book is a once in a lifetime gift for yourself or someone else, a pathway to sheer adventure and pure warm fun.... from a dog's point of view! And if that doesn't get to your heart, nothing will. :)

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Tears of laughter October 6, 2009

By Nancy

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

OMD! I had tears of laughter streaming down my face as I read the book. You are an excellent writer, Bo, and I could totally relate! Anyone who has had the pleasure of the companionship of a dog should read this book.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Bo's Book October 2, 2009

By Nancy L. Diodati

Format:Paperback

I love it I love It I love It..I could not put it down..I had to keep going to find out what happened next..Great Reading...

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read! October 7, 2009

By Lady

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I can't believe this book isn't on the front table of every bookstore! It is well written, very humorous and a great read. It was very easy to relate to many of Bo and his family's adventures, all the while laughing out loud. If you are looking for an upbeat book that will brighten your day, look no further. I highly recommend this to everyone!

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars This was a great read! October 6, 2009

By Teri

Format:Paperback

This was a great read, I laughed until I cried!!! Anyone with a pet is going to love this book. This is going to make a great gift for the Holidays.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Going to the Dogs March 23, 2010

By H. F. Corbin TOP 500 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

Meet Bo Hoefinger, part golden retriever, part chowchow, a "senior dog" by his own definition who is rescued from a shelter by a lonely couple in Albany, New York in what he calls a revenge adoption. It seems that this couple selected him as payback to the husband for watching a football game rather than helping his wife decorate the Christmas tree.

Bo, who says he types 60 words a minute and writes his own memoir, is quite a character. Nothing is sacred to him and he keeps no secrets. With not an ounce of shame he gossips about his devoted two-legged parents, as he tells the reader that his mother is a bad cook and that his father is perhaps a worse handyman. He even fell through a bedroom ceiling once when trying to lay a TV cable.

Members of Bo's four-legged family include a Rhodesian ridgeback named Copper and a feline friend, Moose, a grey-striped tiger cat, who is perhaps best known for her off and on battle with constipation.

Bo has a wicked sense of humor. His account of the efforts his parents went to and what they used to control his bleeding from a wound while they rushed him to the vet emergency room will leave you laughing. "I will say that my paw feels as good as ever, but a strange thing happens. Around the same time of every month my mother gets cranky, and my paw starts to throb with pain." This mutt, however, is capable of much empathy and love as evidenced in the chapter where he movingly discusses his mother's bout and ultimate recovery from cancer. "If you don't have a healthy owner, you don't have anything...."

When the father gets a transfer at his work, this-- if we are to believe Bo's version-- slightly off-center family eventually moves from Albany, New York to a city near Atlanta, Georgia where a local ordinance requires that all residents have a gun in their home. Can you spell Kennesaw? According to Bo, the dogs bark more slowly in Georgia than in New York. In preparation for the move, Bo's mother reads GONE WITH THE WIND. She would have been much better off reading Anne Rivers Siddons or Celestine Sibley if she wanted an accurate portrayal of modern day Atlanta.

Bo includes along with his narrative a lot of photographs, charts, lists, etc: "The Top Reasons I Love My Mother," his favorite foods, his favorite non-food smells, a list of vanity tags and in a "Q and A with the Author" the following:

Q: If you had a gun with two bullets in it and were confronted by Michael Vick, Sylvester the Cat and Tweety Bird, whom would you shoot?

B: I'd shoot Michael Vick, twice.

This dog is well-read and worldly. He is familiar with Helen Keller, Evel Knievel, Johnny Cash, Rip Van Winkle, Willard Scott, Oprah Winfrey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Hugh Panther, Sean Connery, et al.

In this extremely well-written account of his life up to now, Bo comes across as feisty, stubborn, lovable and bright. We can then forgive him for believing that dogs are smarter than cats. Read more ›

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I Know Dogs Can't Write But... March 25, 2010

By C. Stephans TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

When reading Bad to the Bone, you will forget what you thought you knew about the canine mind, as you enter the world of Bo from his point of view. I literally felt like I was inside the mind of Bo. As a proud owner/master of an 11-yr old golden retriever I recognized the golden retriever heritage in Bo's personality and view of the world. I feel like I got the real dog thinking from Bo. I also feel like I know and understand my own dog better. So many of the things I thought was going on with my dog were confirmed in Bo's memoir.

This is a hilarious book. It is never boring and does not get old as Bo shares one experience after another. Some are so funny that I wonder if they are true and how the heck Bo got away with writing some of these antics of his parents. The author has confirmed to me that the stories are true! So enjoy.

Bo is honest and vulnerable in his story. He pulls no punches as he retells stories of escape, eating too much of the wrong thing, wearing a maxi-pad, a diaper, living with a cat and opening his home to another dog.

I think all dog and animal lovers in general will enjoy this book by Bo.