A former journalist has released his first novel, a quirky and whimsical self-help parody, that looks at the world of self-improvement through a dog’s eyes.
Making Very Difficult Things Easy to Do is being published by The Book Guild at the end of May 2022.
Author Jonathan Cross has worked on local and national newspapers, including the Nottingham Post, and now runs his own PR consultancy business based in West Bridgford, where he lives.
The book features Bobs the dog as the narrator and unlikely inspirational guide on the self-help pathway to greatness. Illustrations of Bobs and his cast of canine companions are provided by cartoonist Royston Robertson, whose work is regularly featured in Private Eye and other satirical and humour publications.
Jonathan says: “The book was written during the depths of the Covid-19 pandemic when some of my work slowed up and I had the opportunity to indulge myself in a piece of writing of pure escapism. We had recently bought a puppy and I thought it would be fun to frame the usual self-help/self-improvement narrative through the central character of an over-confident cockapoo, the self-declared world’s ‘highest-achieving dog’.
“I wanted to write a book that would make people smile during a fairly dismal time for the world and by reading the guide, if you believe what Bobs says, you can learn that very difficult things can actually be really easy to do.”
Making Very Difficult Things Easy to Do is available from all good booksellers online including Amazon, Waterstones and WHSmiths. The paperback is priced at £9.49 (costs may vary online).
For further information or to order a copy, please visit the author website www.jcrossauthor.com