Man's Best Friend also happens to be one of Hollywood's Best Friends as Deborah Painter examines the contribution to the silver screen by lovable, talented and brave stars of the cinema: Hollywood's Top Dogs. Their bark was silent but their impact was great as you meet the canine stars of the early silent movies and then trot through time with the likes of Peter the Great, Rin-Tin-Tin, Ace, Flash, Lightnin', Lad, Lassie and Benji. These heroes are brave, pure and offer unequivocal love and devotion, and in today's depressing world, it's nice to find some real heroes of the silver screen.

Hollywood dogs showcases a fine selection of photographs from the famous John Kobal Foundation. Taken between 1920 and 1960 during the 'Golden Age' of Hollywood, they feature stars including Humphrey Bogart, Buster Keaton and Audrey Hepburn posing with dogs of every stature and breed. In almost every case, these stunning photographs have never been seen before now.

From Rocky's dog, Butkus, to Blofelds famous white cat, cats and dogs havetarred in leading Hollywood movies. Sometimes the pet may be symbolic of itwner's character or sometimes the animal forms the basis of a plot linetself, whatever the purpose of the pet, there have been many leading felinesnd hounds throughout film history. These beautiful books feature colourhotographs taken from top blockbusters accompanied by facts about the film,tories behind the real cats and dogs in the limelight and quotations fromamous writers, poets and philosophers. The combination of memorable scenesrom Hollywood with humourous quotes and thoughtful extracts, makes theerfect combination of warmth and depth so essential in any book. Theoloured foils on the jacket of the books with metallic inks throughout theages make these books not only a good read but a beautiful read too.

Before his death in 2009, legendary Texas author Edwin “Bud” Shrake completed a final novel based on his real-life adventures as a Hollywood screenwriter in the 1970s and ’80s. In this new book, we meet screenwriter Richard Swift, who has been lured away from his cushy job at Sports Illustrated to write a movie for Jack Roach, a matinee idol famous for his electric blue eyes, dimpled chin, and a swagger that makes women swoon. As Swift and his new movie star buddy hurtle through days and nights of Hollywood madness, Shrake’s crystalline prose purrs like a Lamborghini speeding along the Pacific Coast Highway. There are spies and fake houses, mountains of drugs, weird sex, crimes, and bizarre feuds. In Hollywood Mad Dogs, Shrake deftly satirizes a world where a screenwriter is supplied with a bag of cocaine and given a week to write a script, a star demands that a pet cat be his sidekick on the trail, and two competing box office titans square off on a golf course, “each of them armed with a putter.” This rollicking new novel, discovered among Shrake’s literary papers at the Wittliff Collections, provides a hilarious and insightful look at the Hollywood meat grinder. It is a story only Bud Shrake could tell, and it is a worthy addition to the author’s celebrated career, which includes some of the most highly praised novels written by a Texan.

This charming and adorable collection of the best cinematic dogs is sure to delight dog lovers and movie-goers alike. The Citizen Canine pack includes sixty of the bravest, cutest, and furriest pooches ever to grace the silver screen. From top-billed hounds like Lassie and Benji to comedic scene-stealers like Asta from Bringing Up Baby and Puffy from There's Something About Mary, all your favorite furry friends are here. Whether you have a canine companion or just wish you did, Citizen Canine is your perfect guide to dogs, movies, and the magical moments when they come together.

A layabout mutt turned therapy dog leads her owner to a new understanding of the good life. At loose ends with her daughter leaving home and her husband on the road, Sue Halpern decided to give herself and Pransky, her under-occupied Labradoodle, a new leash—er, lease—on life by getting the two of them certified as a therapy dog team. Smart, spirited, and instinctively compassionate, Pransky turned out to be not only a terrific therapist but an unerring moral compass. In the unlikely sounding arena of a public nursing home, she led her teammate into a series of encounters with the residents that revealed depths of warmth, humor, and insight Halpern hadn’t expected. And little by little, their adventures expanded and illuminated Halpern’s sense of what virtue is and does—how acts of kindness transform the giver as well as the given-to. Funny, moving, and profound, A Dog Walks into a Nursing Home is the story of how one faithful, charitable, loving, and sometimes prudent mutt—showing great hope, fortitude, and restraint along the way (the occasional begged or stolen treat notwithstanding)—taught a well-meaning woman the true nature and pleasures of the good life.

Behind the scenes… Top-of-his-game neurosurgeon Dr. Jake Lewis has thrown himself into work in a bid to forget the past. Now, used to high-octane medical emergencies, he's furious to be temporarily assigned to pander to LA's biggest diva! Yet when he meets headstrong assistant-to-the-stars Lola Bennett, their instant chemistry makes his new job much more tempting! He's working with her on set in the sultry Bahamas, and it's just a matter of time before that chemistry reaches the boiling point…