Abstract
You will have guessed that this is not a book about pathology, but pathologists who know Mark Butt will appreciate his wry sense of humor and his dedication to his family and profession. The book is a selected compilation of his weekly newspaper columns in the Frederick News-Post. It is light reading with many laughs, and it puts the lie to the famous opening sentence of Tolstoy's Anna Karenina that all happy families are alike—this one is quite distinct! In its commentary on family life and raising children it can be compared to Lynn Johnston's cartoon series For Better or For Worse, but without the pictures.
One of the frustrations to the pathologist is that the column on the family's pet pug that died at 1 year has no mention of the cause of death—not even a one-liner! We were not necessarily expecting a detailed microscopic description, but we were hoping for at least a summarized morphologic or etiologic diagnosis. The pug appeared in several earlier chapters, and the reader knows it had expensive nostril surgery at an early age: a bill with a comma in the price! Not as uncommon, alas, as Mark Butt believes, and certainly not a new experience to those of us with horses. We are told that the pug was a birthday gift to Mark's son but that Mark had really wanted to buy a shotgun.
The chapter “Biking to the beach” (p.117) about Mark's trip from Frederick, MD, to the Delaware shore is a hoot, particularly the description of the chicken carriers, the Rottweilers rushing out of every other driveway, and Mark's efforts to keep up with his very fit brother-in-law. In fact, the challenge of the book is to ration oneself to one or two articles per day.
From the repeated commentary of how ruinously expensive it is to raise a family, you might think that proceeds from this book were a welcome ancillary income for the Butt family, but this is far from the truth. All proceeds benefit the Mark and Susan Butt Saturday Mornings Fund at the Frederick Community Foundation, which in turn benefits children. Go to www.markbutt.com to download an order form—you'll chuckle for weeks!