Hollywoof treatment! WRITER RUTH'S CANINE HEROES

Needing a follow-up to her best-selling read, the Bookseller at the End of the World had a novel idea, proving every dog has its day

- Fleur Guthrie

When author Ruth Shaw launches a new book later this month, her remote Manapōuri property – which famously houses three Wee Bookshops – will undergo somewhat of a trans-fur-mation.

Ruth is hiring a long red carpet so that the canine stars of Bookshop Dogs get the, well, Hollywoof treatment.

“Like an Oscars for dogs!” laughs the 77-year-old, chatting over Zoom from her picturesque bathroom. “It could be absolutely amazing or it could be totally chaotic! Either way, it’s going to be fun.

“I just love every dog – even the naughty ones. The local farm and hunting dogs are really well-behaved. Cove [aka the ‘Self-appointed Bookshop Dog’] will be there for the attention and pats. I just really wanted to make it about them, not me.

“We’re going to get the owners to walk them down the red carpet and introduce the dogs in alphabetical order with a bit of their story. The SPCA is going to be there to give out doggy poo bags.”

And there are bets on which dog is going to “christen” the red carpet first.

Ruth came to international attention two years ago, when she wrote her critically-acclaimed memoir The Bookseller at the End of the World, which contained deeply personal and painful events in her life.

She was sexually assaulted as a teenager and gave birth to a son following the rape, who was then adopted out (they would be reunited almost 20 years later).