The Nearly Calamitous Taming of PZ: A Laboratory Dog's Search for Love, Paperback

A charming, classic adventure tale about the scary, crazy, and heart-thumpingly joyful plunge into connecting with others

A mute, nameless foxhound has spent her life in a laboratory cage. She has never seen the sun. When she gets rescued, Dottie, a diva ladybug with a heart as big as her hat, helps the dog understand the world and find a home with Olivia, a restless, solitary girl seeking comfort that her new pet cannot supply.

The isolated dog and the hesitant girl must face their fear of connecting. They learn to tame each other, let go, survive adventures, and find the courage to trust as they search for their place in the sun.

The Nearly Calamitous Taming of PZ-- lyrical and approachable, with resonant details--has both humor and heart. Although intended for children eight through twelve, its classic unfolding and off-beat characters tickle the fancy of adults as well. It is both an adventure story and a tale with many layers--about overcoming obstacles, mining experience for what matters, and doing what is necessary, though not always desirable, for friendship. Ultimately, it is about the joy of a hard-won connection.

The classic illustrations--with a contemporary edge--reflect this fresh, poignant, wise, and sometimes downright wacky book.

"Not since Kafka has an insect risen to this level of artistic genius."--Dottie

Martha Ritter wrote her first book when she was in the sixth grade. It was a hundred page volume about the Republic of Indonesia, which the president of the United States requested she give to Indonesia's president. Reluctantly, she complied--and nearly caused an international incident. Despite this complication, Ms. Ritter has been writing ever since. A journalist, speechwriter, and poet, she has served as a public affairs director for New York City. As a New York actor, Ms. Ritter has worked in theater and shared her sense of humor with a national audience in a number of classic TV commercials. Ms. Ritter lives in Connecticut and New York City.