“The Tao of Pug” author Nancy Levine says she didn’t set out to become the Pug Lady.
“It just turned out that way,” Levine told the Tri-Valley Herald. “My parents always gravitated toward flat-faced dogs, so I guess it stayed with me.”
Levine got her first Pug when she settled in San Francisco several years ago after touring the country as a stand-up comedian. Burned out on performing, she decided to write a book about her affable and “wise” Pug Wilson.
In that book, “The Tao of Pug,” Wilson imparts wisdom based on the teachings of Lao Tzu, the Chinese philosopher who wrote the “Tao Te Ching,” which advocates a simple way of life. The book was so popular that Levine penned two more about the canine Taoist master, including “Homer for the Holidays” and “Letters to a Young Pug.”
“These books suit me because I get to use the punch lines from my comedy, the storytelling from my writing and English background, my love of dogs and my love of dog photography,” she said.
Levine’s latest book, “The Ugly Pugling: Wilson the Pug in Love,” follows Wilson as he turns his life upside down for a Mastiff looker named Hedy – until Taoist wisdom sets him straight.
“The Ugly Pugling: Wilson the Pug in Love” is in bookstores now. For more information, visit www.wilsonthepug.com.