Out on a Leash

Shirley MacLaine has finally found the love of a lifetime. Not in the arms of a new man, but in the furry bundle of irresistible charms that is her terrier. With her winning canine ways and an endless wellspring of love with no strings attached, Terry has succeeded in doing what no man before her ever did--slowing Shirley's peripatetic world travels, shifting her global axis to hearth and home. Now there are few greater pleasures for Shirley MacLaine than a long walk to the horizon of her New Mexico ranch, Terry by her side, savoring the lavender sunsets, and the warm wind scented by juniper and wildlife that Terry identifies long before it comes into view. We hear not only from Shirley herself, but also from Terry, in first-person passages. Through Shirley's eyes we see how her beloved terrier provides a portal for exploring the nature and meaning of love in Shirley's life. At one point Shirley even speculates that Terry may be the sister she has never known, and that together they shared at least one past life, in ancient Egypt, and possibly more. And of course there is Terry as a gateway to spirit, to being full in each moment, to that boundless, ecstatic love that surpasses all understanding. From Terry's perspective we catch intimate glimpses of her mistress's domestic and inner life, as the free spirit who has never truly thrown caution to the winds, as the late-night junkie for all-news television, as a thoughtful, sensitive soul continually probing the deeper nature of reality, and negotiating a new balance between her professional ambitions and continued spiritual growth in later life. Charming, witty, and ultimately a wise memoir of one of the truly remarkable, beloved women of our time, Out on a Leash will stake its place on the bestseller list and refresh its own sales whenever gift-giving time draws near.