When Harry Met Minnie

By Martha Teichner
Author: Martha Teichner
ISBN: 9781250212535
ON SALE: 02/02/2021

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ISBN: 9781250212528
Hardcover

A memoir of love and loss, of being in the right place at the right time, and of the mysterious ways a beloved pet can bring people together, from CBS Sunday Morning News correspondent and multi-Emmy-Award-winning Martha Teichner.

There are true fairy tales. Stories that exist because impossible-to-explain coincidences change everything. Except in real life, not all of them have conventional, happily-ever-after endings. When Harry Met Minnie is that kind of fairy tale, with the vibrant, romantic New York City backdrop of its namesake, the movie When Harry Met Sally, and the bittersweet wisdom of Tuesdays with Morrie.

There’s a special camaraderie among early-morning dog walkers. Gathering at dog runs in the park, or strolling through Union Square Farmer’s Market before the bustling crowd appears, fellow pet owners become familiar–as do the personalities of their beloved animals. In this special space and time, a chance encounter with an old acquaintance changed Martha Teichner’s world. As fate would have it, her friend knew someone who was dying of cancer, from radiation exposure after 9/11, and desperate to find a home for her dog, Harry. He was a Bull Terrier―the same breed as Martha’s dear Minnie. Would Martha consider giving Harry a safe, loving new home?

In short order, boy dog meets girl dog, the fairy tale part of this story. But there is so much more to this book. After Martha agrees to meet Harry and his owner Carol, what begins as a transaction involving a dog becomes a deep and meaningful friendship between two women with complicated lives and a love of Bull Terriers in common. Through the heartbreak and grief of Carol’s illness, the bond that develops changed Martha’s life, Carol’s life, Minnie’s life, Harry’s life. As it changed Carol’s death as well.

In this rich and touching narrative, Martha considers the ways our stories are shaped by the people we meet, and the profound love we can find by opening our hearts to unexpected encounters.

Martha Teichner_ Credit - Zacry Spears
Martha Teichner has been a correspondent for “CBS Sunday Morning” since December 1993, where she’s equally adept at covering major breaking national and international news stories as she is handling in-depth cultural and arts topics. Since joining CBS News in 1977, Teichner has earned multiple national awards for her original reporting, including twelve Emmy Awards and five James Beard Foundation Awards. Teichner was also part of team coverage of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, which earned CBS News a 2014 duPont-Columbia Award. Teichner was born in Traverse City, Mich. She graduated from Wellesley College in 1969 with a bachelor’s degree in economics. She attended the University of Chicago’s Graduate School of Business Administration. Teichner resides in New York City.

Praise for Martha Teichner

When Harry Met Minnie is such a breath of fresh air. Short and sweet, it’s ostensibly a memoir about an oddball canine romance. Its deeper subject, though, is the romance of cities, particularly New York, where the author has lived for decades. … As the world slowly emerges from the imposed isolations of Covid-19, When Harry Met Minnie is a timely refresher course in the power of community.”

The Wall Street Journal

“Teichner’s main themes are sure to warm readers in this cold coronavirus winter: the steadfast devotion between dogs and their owners, and the essential role friendship plays in sustaining both humans and their beloved pets … Teichner has learned that we all have the capacity to create and build new friendships and attachments at whatever age or stage of life. That such rewards are possible is the inspirational lesson for all the characters in — and readers of — this touching saga.”

Washington Post

"When Harry Met Minnie is a tour-de-force of storytelling. Martha Teichner not only charts the course of two remarkable friendships, between two people and two dogs, she invites us to consider our own relationships. The stars that had to align to put someone special in our life. This is a love story, masterful, warm and funny, heartfelt and heartbreaking. I absolutely loved this book."

Louise Penny
New York Times bestselling author of ALL THE DEVILS ARE HERE

“A lovely, moving ode to the beauty and pain of loving our fellow creatures, whether human, canine or otherwise.”

BookPage
Starred Review

“Teichner's fans will adore learning about her family, childhood, travels, and many adventures, but anyone will find much to savor here—love of dogs not even required.”

Booklist

"A poignant memoir recounts how two dog lovers bonded over their shared affection for an aging bull terrier.... A heartwarming and heartbreaking story of friendship and grief."

Kirkus Reviews

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