Julie Hill Barton’s Dog Medicine Goes Big

Julie Hill Barton reads from her book, "Dog Medicine," at A Great Good Place for Books, Oakland, CA. Here with a fan, Kirby, a brindle-haired boxer. Photo by Barbara Newhall — Julie Hill Barton read from *Dog Medicine* and greeted fans, including Kirby, a brindle-haired boxer. Photo by Barbara Newhall

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

My writing pal Julie Hill Barton has lucked out. Her wonderful memoir, Dog Medicine, has been scooped up by a major publisher — Penguin. Julie made an appearance last night at Oakland’s popular bookstore, A Great Good Place for Books, before heading out on a whirlwind book tour today to St. Louis and beyond.

Julie Hill Barton read from her book, "Dog Medicine," at A Great Good Place for Books, Oakland, CA. and brought along a photo of its star Bunker. Photo by Barbara Newhall — Julie Hill Barton brought along a photo of the dog who restored her to health, Bunker, and inspired *Dog Medicine*. Photo by Barbara Newhall

To the delight of the score of book lovers who eschewed the Republican convention TV coverage to hear her read, Julie brought along — digitally — the star of her book, Bunker the golden retriever.

Julie Hill Barton and Think Piece Press

Published originally last year by Think Piece Press, “Dog Medicine” found an eager audience of pet lovers as well as folks who — like Julie — have suffered from depression or childhood sibling abuse. An agent brought the book to the publisher’s attention, and Penguin arranged to acquire the rights.

Julie reports that she made sure that her “tiny publisher,” whose mission it is to inspire public discussion of mental health issues, was amply rewarded for supporting her book when it was just another memoir manuscript looking for a home.

For more about Julie’s book, go to “‘Dog Medicine’ –– A Dog Lover’s Journey From Depression to Health.” More about books at “Do Books Have Rights? This One Didn’t.”