Coffee with a canine: Heather Gudenkauf & Maxine

The current featured duo at Coffee with a Canine: Heather Gudenkauf and Maxine.

The writer, on how she and Maxine were united:

My husband is a pheasant hunter and the kids and I wanted a family dog. We did our research and found out that German Shorthaired Pointers are perfect for families and for hunters. We found Maxine at the home of a man who raises GSPs. We were playing with a litter of new puppies and my husband noticed a beautiful dog that was about three months old. We...[read on]

Heather Gudenkauf is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of The Weight of Silence. Her new novel, These Things Hidden will be released on February 1, 2011.

Among the praise for The Weight of Silence:

"Deeply moving and exquisitely lyrical, this is a powerhouse of a debut novel. Heather Gudenkauf is one of those rare writers who can tell a tale with the skill of a poet while simultaneously cranking up the suspense until it's unbearable."
-- Tess Gerritsen, NYT bestselling author

A brilliant, nuanced examination of a small town - Jodi Picoult, eat your heart out. Gudenkauf has a lyrical voice, shifting effortlessly through first person narrative from a variety of characters, including the focus of the novel, a little girl named Calli who is a selective mute. I met Heather a couple of months ago, and she described the book to me thusly: "Two girls go into the woods, and only one comes out. And she can't talk." I can't rave enough about this book - it's just fantastic."
-- JT Ellison, bestselling author of Judas Kiss, 14 and All the Pretty Girls

Visit Heather Gudenkauf's website and journal.

Read--Coffee with a Canine: Heather Gudenkauf and Maxine.

--Marshal Zeringue