Lily and the Octopus

April 11, 2016
Screenwriter Rowley’s sensitive, hilarious, and emotionally rewarding debut novel explores the effect that pets can have on human lives. Teddy is unhappily single in L.A. In between sessions with his therapist and dates with men he meets online, it is his beloved 12-year-old dachshund, Lily, who occupies his heart. Curiously, Teddy is able to communicate with Lily, with whom he debates the attractiveness of male celebrities and plays board games. Distressingly, he is also able to communicate with the “octopus” attached to the little dog’s head, which is soon revealed to be a metaphor for Lily’s lethal cranial tumor. Complicating matters is the increasing prevalence of Lily’s seizures and the looming inevitability of her demise. The intimacy of pet ownership is sweetly suffused throughout this heartwarming autobiographical fiction, originally written as self-therapy for the author’s own grief. In generous helpings of bittersweet humanity, Rowley has written an immensely poignant and touchingly relatable tale that readers (particularly animal lovers) will love. Agent: Rob Weisbach, Rob Weisbach Creative Management.

February 1, 2016

In a book much loved in-house, Ted Flask's adored companion, an aging dog named Lily, has an interesting encounter with a cephalopod mollusk. Screenwriter Rowley was charming and articulate at ALA Midwinter's AAP/Library Reads debut author panel.

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

May 15, 2016

Fortysomething Ted and his 12-year-old dachshund Lily live a quiet life in Los Angeles. Ted hasn't had a boyfriend in years, but he and Lily watch movies, play board games, and talk about guys together. Everything is going along smoothly until the appearance of the octopus, Ted's name for the tumor that appears on Lily's head. Because of her age and prior medical history, Lily's treatment options are limited. Still, Ted is determined to save the life of his best friend. The fight gets more serious as Lily loses her sight and the octopus begins to talk to Ted. Ted reminisces about his and Lily's life together as he devises increasingly outlandish tactics in his war with this eight-armed invader. A long and almost mythic sojourn aboard a rented trawler leads Ted and Lily to the climax of their battle with the implacable enemy. VERDICT This funny and heartbreaking first novel will appeal to dog lovers, especially those who have had to face the harder aspects of giving their love to a creature who will return that adoration perfectly but for a far too brief time. [See Prepub Alert, 1/4/16.]--Dan Forrest, Western Kentucky Univ. Libs., Bowling Green

Copyright 2016 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.