Diana Black and Mary Cunningham have been lifelong friends. They’re also canine enthusiasts and huge fans of the written word in its wittiest form. A meaty metaphor or the perfect pun will set their tails to wagging so, along with Melinda Richarz Bailey, they came up with this howlingly hilarious guide to the joys and pitfalls of growing older. WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty is a must for any mature woman who enjoys a good laugh with a thoughtful life lesson thrown in for good measure.

Now the friends are sharing even more of their wise and witty take on aging with their newest offering: Accentuate the Pawsitive. WOOFers everywhere will gain fresh insights into several areas of their lives: mental health, emotional health, relationships, spirituality and more. I interviewed both Diana and Mary on Feisty Side of Fifty Radio and they told me all about it. (It’s a fun fifteen minutes of listening pleasure so, when you’re dog tired of all the bad news out there, take a moment to hear something pawsitive!)

If midlife is throwing you a big bone to pick and you find yourself barking up the wrong tree dealing with meno-paws, Sharpie wrinkles, and the like, check out both WOOF and Accentuate the Pawsitive. As Diana and Mary put it: “Mind spinning? Mood Swinging? Middle sagging? Get used to it. When you reach 50, shift happens. But, you’re not alone. WOOFers to the rescue!” And, for women only over fifty, that’s the doggone truth!

I know you feel it—it begins like a tiny rumble, and grows steadily into a full-fledged howl: “I’m me… I’m me… at last, I’m finally ME!!”

This is the feeling the authors of WOOF: Women Only Over Fifty term “realignment.” Mary Cunningham and Diana Black believe, rather than “reinventing” ourselves in midlife, women come back to who we truly are. We return to our unique identity apart from husbands, children, careers, and other roles we willingly adopted in our younger years. In celebration of this amazing revelation, their book is packed with free-spirited, fun and pawsitive thoughts on growing older.

WOOF is filled with humorous reflections on an entire range of issues we face as aging women. Everything from “The Hair of the Dog” to “Menopaws” to the “Woof It Down Senior Maintenance Diet” are covered. The authors freely impart their observations on the inevitable passage to the land of the long tooth, gleefully sharing their own bones to pick on the topic.

I was thrilled to interview both Diana and Mary on Feisty Side of Fifty Radio and am still rolling over with howls of laughter. Take a listen and I know you’ll be howling, too!

If you’re looking for the perfect book to while away the dog days of summer, I can’t think of a better choice than WOOF. Check out the trailer and you’ll see what I mean. Or better yet, throw your friends a bone and start your very own chapter of WOOF. You can find out more by reading the book and by visiting the WOOFers Club site.

Aside for writing for us old dogs (okay, that was just plain mean!) Mary and Diana each have written their own books aimed at children and teens.  Check out the Cynthia’s Attic series and No Words for Wendel. They’ll make the perfect gifts for your grandchildren.

If you’re panting for your very own copy of WOOF right away, just click here. (It’s the third one down.)