W. Bruce Cameron — the New York Times bestselling author of numerous books, including “A Dog’s Purpose,” made into a feature film starring Dennis Quaid —discusses how he decided to make Breed Specific Legislation, or BSL (in this case, Denver’s ban on pit bulls) a core element of his new novel, “A Dog’s Way Home.” Cameron expands on the injustice of how municipalities and counties where BSL exists can take action against a dog simply because of how it looks—and that government in those places can dictate what sort of dogs you can, and cannot own. While the Denver pit bull ban is central to “A Dog’s Way Home,” Cameron notes that it triggers the extended journey that Bella, the novel’s pup protagonist and narrator, embarks on, and the marvelous, distinctive canine traits her odyssey reflects. We return to a topic we’ve explored before—Cameron has been a guest multiple times—how to write dogs, especially when there’s a canine narrator like Bella, including his self-established tenets for what that narrator can know, and what observations and expressions can (and can’t) be included. Noting earlier in the interview that some individuals and organizations are staunch pit opponents, Cameron acknowledges toward the end that it’s a distinct possibility that PETA (he won’t say their name) may attack him and/or “A Dog’s Way Home,” given their anti-pit stance—he says he’s “braced” for it—and the outfit’s orchestrated attack on the film version of “A Dog’s Purpose” with the doctored video on TMZ. (www.brucecameron.com)
ALSO: I spoke briefly with Anita Krajnc, the Canadian animal activist and founder of Toronto Pig Save arrested for giving water to a truckload of thirsty pigs, as the truck was pulling into a slaughterhouse. The case generated worldwide attention and media coverage (I’d spoken with her at length of Feb. 2016), and six days earlier, the judge found Krajnc not guilty. (www.facebook.com/anita.krajnc.58, www.torontopigsave.org)
COMEDY CORNER: Tom Papa’s “Pet People” (http://tompapa.com)
MUSIC: Rebekah Pulley’s “Talking Animals Theme,” instrumentals
NAME THAT ANIMAL TUNE: We didn’t play Name That Animal Tune today
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