Katie Up And Down the Hall, by Glenn Plaskin

Katie Up and Down the Hall: The True Story of How One Dog Turned Five Neighbors into a Family by Glenn Plaskin
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Over the past decade or two, it seems that similar groups of books have been published in a relatively short span of time, usually following the popularity of one particular book in each genre. People rediscovered Jane Austen, and suddenly, Jane Austen knock-offs appear: Jane Austen in Boca, Jane Austen in Scarsdale, Bridget Jones' Diary, and Jane Austen Ruined My Life, among others.

Another example is the run of books dealing with families' pets, following the popularity of John Grogan's Marley & Me. Katie Up and Down the Hall: The True Story of How One Dog Turned Five Neighbors into a Family, by Glenn Plaskin is one of those pet books.

Glenn Plaskin had moved into an apartment in New York City and wanted a dog. As luck would have it, he was introduced to Katie, a beautiful Cocker Spaniel who would soon become his dog. (Okay, I should add a disclaimer here: The photo on the book's cover caught my attention, since my beloved Cocker Spaniel, Osha, had died several years earlier.) Katie soon found that if she wandered "up and down the hall," she would have friends to play with, feed her treats, and hang out with, thus helping neighbors on the same floor to meet each other and become an extended "family."

While this sweetly written book may not be everyone's cup of tea, if you enjoyed reading Marley & Me, there's a good chance you'll enjoy this. While Grogan set the bar for pet stories at 5 stars, Katie... ranks a good, solid 4.

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