BARK short stories by Lorrie Moore, worth yapping about

Lorrie Moore (b. Amer. 1957) is a an award winning novelist & short story writer.  Her previous short story collection BIRDS of America was a Nat'l best seller.  In her recent book of short stories BARK proves again she deserves to be ranked along with great writers such as Alice Munroe, John Updike and J.D. Salinger.  BARK is a wry & astute look at life,  "Every day there was something new to mourn and something old to celebrate."  The stories are loosely threaded on failed relationships, single parenting, aging & dealing with loneliness.  In short, basically everyday experiences & emotions.  While yapping about both love & cruelty, dogs are omnipresent in her stories.  The animals' laissez faire attitudes contrast sharply with the highly charged emotions of their owners.  Moore's characters are more in the middle in their outlooks; despairing, but holding on hoping for better times.  "Perhaps everyone had their own way of preparing to die.  Life got you ready. Life got you sad."  BARK is a smart compilation of stories to make you howl in amusement.