Oddball mixture of how a middle-aged couple got together, and the history of their shared dogs. There is so much mention of therapy you wonder if the dogs didn't get to partake at times, some of the design leaves the reading order really up in the air, floating beyond the cloud labelled "doesn't matter", and somewhere or other a TV show one of them is supposed to have made gets mentioned; it's on nutflux so no wonder I'd never ever heard of it. The biggest problem is you probably needed to have known that to have any connection with the humans here – no real attempt is made to show their personality and get them on your side before the cycle of shrink, dog, dog, shrink kicks in.

Maria Bamford is so odd that she goes all the way around the bend and comes back as extremely relatable. This graphic novel is another example; I love the focus on her and her Husband's dogs, and Scott's art style is loose and off enough to reflect their chaotic, loveable energy.

This is a real treat for dog lovers!

Maria Bamford and her husband, Scott Marvel Cassidy, love their canine pals. Together they've adopted several elderly dogs, most of them appear to be of the pug variety. They don't shy away from blind or chronically ill dogs. I honestly don't know how they do it - adopting a creature knowing that its time with you will be very short. (Saying goodbye to a dog once every fifteen years is hard enough for me.) So, get your hankies ready, this one has many instances of dogs crossing the rainbow bridge where they can frolic unimpeded in meadows full of wildflowers and butterflies.

The book is a fun mix of graphic memoir and dog comics. I particularly loved the tale told by The Potato, a favorite dog bed, about all the canine nappers it has hosted. My only complaint is that the book should have been longer! (And, maybe not included the Michael Flatley bits.)

I loved this book. I don’t know anything about the author and I had to find her shows on Netflix which I shall enjoy watching. This is just a great story of finding love, creating family and loving dogs. I think the artwork style is just perfect for the story and I loved how the different dogs also spoke in the story. I felt their loss as they passed away from old age and ill health but I loved the devotion of the author and her husband.

This is just a glimpse into the life of another person in a country miles away who I know nothing about, but it was such a beautiful and caring introduction and a moving graphic novel.

Copy provided via Netgalley in exchange for an unbiased review.

I’ve been following Maria Bamford since she opened up about performing in a traveling Star Trek show. Now, from this graphic novel that she co-wrote with her husbands I also learned that she had dated a Ferengi (who is not her husband), making Bamford a goddess in my eyes. Oh yeah, and she’s into rescuing pugs—just like my mom. If you don’t finish this book as a fan of this couple, go date a Orion (okayyyyyy, that would also be cool).

Narrated by pugs, this graphic novel has been both fun and sad read. How I wish dogs have longer life 😭 A short read but I enjoyed every pages of it. It's poignant and beautiful. I'm inspired to read more with the same premose as this.

Human at its core, and intriguing storytelling. I like the use of verbal and visual and the unique take on experience.

I was interested in reading an biographical graphic novel told from the perspective of a dog. Great concept, loved in in Flush by Virginia Woolf, but it wasn't executed well here.

I received a complimentary copy of this book via Netgalley. Opinions expressed in this review are my own.

I enjoyed what I read in this autobiographical graphic novel. I did have to stop once Blueberry died. My Frankie just passed of a brain tumor and I can't stop crying about it. Obviously, you would not know that while writing your story, but it's been hard. I decided to rate what I read and I liked it. It Has a voyeur feel in it that's quite fun. Like reading a stranger's diary.

I wanted to love this but something about the writing style made it hard for me to follow the story. I also was missing some sort of context for understanding fully what I was reading.

Thank you Fantagraphics and NetGalley for the ARC. I was interested in reading this book for the perspective of the pugs, and while you certainly do get that in this book I really felt like I wanted more. The development with the couple starting their courtship and acquiring each furry friend was nice and welcoming, but for me at least, I really was expecting a personal narrative within these pups and what kind of life they would have. It's there, but it's just an implied canine perspective from their owners. After reading something like Watership Down a few months ago, I was almost expecting an animal driven perspective/story, and not just the owners talking about when they were rescued, lived, and died. The art is clever, and for people aware of this couple and their Netflix series will probably find something satisfying with this book. I went into this with no awareness of the Netflix series, and hoping l'd read an animal adventure comic. I'm thankful to read this, but it just wasn't for me.

Thank you to Fantagraphics, NetGalley, Maria Bamford, and Scott Marvel Cassidy for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review!

I like that this comic tackles issues centered around mental health, setting boundaries, getting therapy, and of course, rescuing dogs. A cute tale with beautiful illustrations throughout.

Note: I received access to read this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I really like Maria Bamford, and the idea that she would have her pugs write a comic book sounds like just the type of whimsy that should work... but it doesn't. There isn't much of a story through line. Lines that would have landed if Maria Bamford said them out loud don't land when said by a realistic aging dog. It's also very short coming in around 60 pages that seem padded out. There's some cute stuff and the artwork is well-done but lacks personality.

This was almost completely incoherent. It's like random asides noted down in a diary, but by dogs. I thought it was going to have a point, but the only point seems to be that Maria Bamford and her husband like to adopt elderly pugs. The art is also pretty poor.

This book was ok but lacked good details and was hard to keep going. I ended up not finishing the book.

Having never heard of this title, the author, illustrator, what drew me in was the title and artwork. The artwork remained interesting throughout thankfully. The story unfortunately was very confusing for me. The overall story is about a couple and the many pets they own throughout the years, that was really cute and enjoyable. There were many references that seemed very niche, maybe even personal so they went right over my head, maybe I’m just not the target audience. For a graphic novel they used too much text in my opinion, instead of letting the art tell the story, some panels were drowning in text with a small, not so meaningful scene hiding behind it. There were also too many wasted panels in my opinion. At least 10 maybe more pages with little footprints on them felt like they were just filler to up the page count. Those pages could have been used for more meaningful scenes and to spread out the text a bit.

I honestly couldn't get myself to like this graphic novel.

The illustrations were nothing great, there were no moments I thought something stood out or caught my attention. The story itself wasn't all that interesting, even though it was based on true events, I didn't find it mind-blowing or inspiring. It addressed mental illnesses and that was the only real part of the graphic novel that I focused on. Otherwise, this was quite a boring read and if it hadn't been for the amusing title, I wouldn't have picked this book otherwise.

I really enjoyed this graphic novel (received through Netgalley), especially the portrayal of the couple's dogs. The dogs were very realistic, poignant and funny. Appreciate the art as well. Recommended

A love story told by pugs -- while I don't usually gravitate toward love stories, how could I resist a love story told by such charming narrators? And this story wasn't sappy, it was realistic to the point of being heartbreaking. The two main characters meet on a dating site and manage to get past a history of unsatisfying situations to create a beautiful relationship.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this.

Maria Bamford, comedienne extrodinaire, is married to artist Scott Marvel Cassidy, and this is their story, as told by their many pugs. We see them meet and become a family, in all their weird glory. Bamford, known for her candor about her mental illness, and Cassidy, who also shares his struggles, are open and honest about who they are and their insecurities. The many elderly pugs who tell the story are a fun and inventive way to let us peek into their lives.