• Age: 13
• Grade: 8

Vancouver Islander Adrian Chamberlain always wanted a Porsche. When that turned out to be too expensive, he got a pug puppy instead. Adventures with Ollie is a collection of vignettes describing his family? exploits with a headstrong, playful pug named Ollie. Adrian describes the delights of housetraining, teaching a dog new tricks, smuggling Ollie into summer cabins and trying to dissuade him from rolling on dead sea creatures. Adventures with Ollie provides a insider? view into dog culture that all pet owners will recognize. Readers will sympathize with Adrian? efforts to compete with macho types who fling logs into the ocean to be retrieved by their enormous Labrador Retrievers. They will be amused by his embarrassment over his wife? habit of dressing Ollie in peculiar costumes. And they may share his bewilderment when, after warding off a pug-chasing rat, he is reprimanded by a fervent animal rights activist. A funny, warm-hearted read that will amuse dog lovers?and anyone who takes delight in human/animal antics.

Adrian Chamberlain is an award-winning arts writer for the Victoria Times Colonist, the daily newspaper in Victoria, BC. Raised on Gabriola Island, he has a bachelor of arts degree in English from the University of Victoria and a master of arts degree in journalism from the University of Victoria. He has won three BC Newspaper Awards for arts writing. In 2005 his short story, Temple Baptist, 1973, was a winner in Monday Magazine’s summer fiction contest.

Adrian Chamberlain's profile page

Adventures With Ollie

As Chamberlain (aka “the manservant”) says, there are only two types of people “pug lovers” (PLs) and “non pug lovers” (NPLs). Ollie’s adventures are ingeniously revealed in this delightful collection of 65 short stories including Puppy Play School, Rover Romper Room, Doggie Dancing and Doggie Boot Camp (K9 Fit Fur Fun) classes. Chamberlain’s self-deprecating humour will leave PL’s and NPL’s in stitches as he contemplates such life-altering situations, as what if dogs could tweet?, WWOD? (What would Ollie do?) and early dog dementia. His motto is “be nice to my super friendly dog or I won’t like you!” Here are the comical antics of Penny the Miracle Pug, Tripod (the 3-legged rescue dog), Bob the Wonder dog (who was abducted by a wolf and lived to prove it!), and Daisy the pug who scares herself when she farts.