Eight years ago, when only part of the partnership had grey hair, Boone joined me on the floors of local libraries in an effort to help children learn to read. His job description included only one requirement, which conveniently happened to be one of his strengths: lying quietly on a blanket. Young readers and readers-to-be sat next to him and shared their books with a four-legged friend, practicing their craft in the presence of polite and patient tutor.

Boone’s career as a reading assistant involved a bit of travel and though he loves the idea of travel, he’s not so fond of the reality. Car rides cause stress for him, but the appearance of the yellow tote bag or green fleece blanket created a Velcro dog who wouldn’t leave my side until he jumped into the truck. He recently started reacting similarly to the laminator and paper-cutter I use to make bookmarks for our readers so I found myself sneaking upstairs to prepare for our programs while he was deep in sleep .

Eight years is an impressive run for a dog who came into our home knowing nothing about the simple pleasures of family life – things like screen doors or staircases. He adapted quickly (except for the Christmas tree, an apparently irresistible Call of the Wild) learned a few obedience basics, but because he was not, is not and will not ever be, motivated by treats, toys, or high-pitched happy voices, that’s it. Just the basics. No fancy stuff, no tricks, stupid or otherwise.

Yet Boone, by simply being Boone, developed a loyal following for his regular visits to the Delano Library and his summer programs at the Maple Lake Library.

He’s spent hours on his fleecy blanket listening to children, encouraging them with his gentle giant presence and the occasional pooch smooch.

Some kept their distance, others couldn’t get close enough, and many found comfort and confidence with just a touch of the hand.

He loved his library friends, and they loved Boone.

Sadly, the strength of his spirit can no longer out-muscle the weakness of his joints, and because his hips can’t keep up with his heart, Boone listened to his last young reader this week. And while he enjoyed all the love that came with his library days, he seems happy to hang out at home, napping in any one of his favorite nooks, possibly dreaming of Biscuit, Dewey, Ike LaRue, Little Bear, Mudge, Rocket, Sam I Am, or The Cat in the Hat.

As Boone retires to a much-deserved life of leisure, his buddy Rowdy is training to pick up the program next year. One Boone loyalist already expressed a preference for “Books with Boone” over “Reading with Rowdy”, so my little golden retriever has his work cut out for him.

In so many ways…