Bespotted: My Family's Love Affair With Thirty-Eight Dalmatians

A "beautifully written and deeply felt" memoir that "slices to the heart of why the dogs in our lives are so beloved" (Michelle Richmond, author of The Year of Fog). The Sexton family's long love affair with the Dalmatian breed began on a snowy morning in Linda's childhood. At the family home just outside Boston, Linda heard a whimpering coming from the basement. She discovered their first family dog giving birth to a litter. Witnessing the intimate act of birth had a profound effect on the family. Her mother, the renowned poet Anne Sexton, used the experience to complete the poem "Live," part of her third collection, titled Live or Die, which was later awarded the Pulitzer Prize. For Linda, the boundless joy of both breed and breeding triggered a lifelong love of the distinctively spotted canines. All told, thirty-eight Dalmatians will move through her life: the ones that cheer and support her through difficulty, divorce, and...

**A "beautifully written and deeply felt" memoir that "slices to the heart of why the dogs in our lives are so beloved" (Michelle Richmond, author of *The Year of Fog*).**
The Sexton family's long love affair with the Dalmatian breed began on a snowy morning in Linda's childhood. At the family home just outside Boston, Linda heard a whimpering coming from the basement. She discovered their first family dog giving birth to a litter. Witnessing the intimate act of birth had a profound effect on the family. Her mother, the renowned poet Anne Sexton, used the experience to complete the poem "Live," part of her third collection, titled *Live or Die*, which was later awarded the Pulitzer Prize.
For Linda, the boundless joy of both breed and breeding triggered a lifelong love of the distinctively spotted canines. All told, thirty-eight Dalmatians will move through her life: the ones that cheer and support her through difficulty, divorce, and depression; the ones that stay with her as she enters the world of professional breeding and showing of Dals; and, of course, the one true dog of her heart, Gulliver, her most stalwart of canine champions.
*Bespotted *captures an important piece of this literary family's history and taps into the fascinating world of dog showing/dog fancy. It is "a delight and a book of wisdom for all those who love dogs and people" (Erica Jong, author of *Fear of Flying*).