A Dog's Purpose

When A Dog’s Purpose was first published in 2010, it was a hit, spending 49 weeks on the New York Times bestsellers list. Critics were mostly positive about the novel, with some praising author Bruce W. Cameron for his ability to capture the personality of a dog in prose. The novel also received praise from professionals who work closely with animals, such as Temple Grandin, known for her work with cattle, and Marty Becker, morning show veterinarian consultant. The novel was also recommended to readers of the Christian Science Monitor as a wholesome family story. However, along with praise, there was also criticism of Cameron’s approach to storytelling with a dog as the main character. One such example of this is a Washington Post article published on June 23, 2010, that claims Cameron “exploits dogs’ selflessness for his own mawkish ends” (Zipp, Yvonne. “Five New Books About Dogs,” The Washington Post, 2010). Despite this criticism, the novel continues to enjoy success. In fact, as of 2023, A Dog’s Purpose has a 4.35-star rating on the book cataloging website GoodReads. It was also followed by the second novel in the trilogy in 2012, A Dog’s Journey, and the third novel in 2019, A Dog’s Promise. The trilogy also spawned more than half a dozen additional novels.

In October 2010, the movie rights to A Dog’s Purpose were sold to DreamWorks. A movie with the same name was released in January 2017. The movie starred KJ Apa and Dennis Quaid as Ethan at different ages and Josh Gad as the voice of Bailey. The movie received mixed reviews upon release despite doing well at the box office. Many critics found the movie overly sweet and some of the plot points unbelievable. Yet, the movie was praised for both its human and dog performances, as several dogs were used to portray Bailey in his many incarnations. However, controversy plagued the release of the film when TMZ published footage of a dog being forced into running water on the set of the movie. The American Humane Society, the entity that oversees the use of animals on movie and television sets, opened an investigation into the incident, and People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) called for a ban of the movie. The investigation determined that industry safety measures were followed on set and that the video footage had been altered. The movie experienced a jump in box office sales after the results of the investigation were released, with most of the sales coming from matinee showings. The success of the movie led to a sequel based on Cameron’s second novel in the trilogy, A Dog’s Journey. This movie starred Marg Helgenberger alongside Dennis Quaid and Josh Gad, who both revised their previous roles.