But it’s so much better.” Their home is warm. “None of this was part of the plan,” John opines. Indeed, John and Jen eventually reap all the benefits of their relational hard work and sacrifice. John balks at that and says, “Mend it, don’t end it.” And even if it’s harder than I thought-I don’t regret it!” Jen decides to quit her job and be a full time mom, saying, “If I have to give up something … it’s not this.” At one tough point in their relationship, John’s good friend, Sebastian, wonders if the couple will divorce. The movie points to the hardship and sacrifice that raising a family entails, calling it “The hardest job in the world.” Jen says, “But I made a choice. But through the relational tugs and pulls of everything from financial woes to a miscarriage, they figure out ways to pull together and support each other. Married life is not always easy for the Grogans, and they face some straining problems even outside the blitzkrieg craziness of their dog. That is, if Marley doesn’t drag them all to the funny farm first. Why, he may someday even write a book about his family and this insane animal. He’s offered a standing column and starts writing about his embarrassing escapades with Marley. She and John love the doggone mutt, though, so they stick it out.Īs the family grows, so does John’s career. Not only that, but there’s a baby on the way, and Jen worries that it might not be safe. This hound packs the leash-straining wallop of a dozen dogcatchers and causes everyone within 50 feet of his slavering maw and raking nails to live in misery. Which is all kind of cute in a puppy, but in a full-grown canine behemoth, it’s not so pleasant.

There they quickly find jobs at competing newspapers … and get a dog.Īctually, the new dog, Marley, is a tornado that can’t sit still, won’t stop gnawing on everything of value and seems unfazed by efforts to train him. Based on a bestselling memoir, Marley & Me is about John and Jenny Grogan who, fresh from walking down the aisle, move to sunny Palm Beach, Fla., to start their lives together.

Marley & me book