"A heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately uplifting story of family, love, loyalty, and hope - a captivating look at the wonders and absurdities of human life... as only a dog could tell it.""The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein is a book that I've been aware of for a while due to it's popularity. I obtained a copy from Dann a few weeks ago and set to reading it a few days ago as I had nearly gone through everything I had to read at work.
The story is told from the perspective of a family dog named Enzo. As the novel begins, Enzo is nearing the end of his life and looking forward to his perceived rebirth as a man. Before his death he tells his life story with his owner Denny, a skilled racer, and the family that is formed over the years. The novel is clever in it's narrative and approach and the author certainly knows how to pull on the heart stings of the reader. At times extremely sad, the book finishes boldly and more satisfying than anything I've read lately.
I wanted to like the book more than I did. I appreciate the wonderful characters, especially the narrator, Enzo, and the themes of life that parallel racing, but I knew the direction the book was going to take early on and I felt it to be a little contrived. It's a book I would definitely recommend but it's not my cup of tea. Be prepared to have your heart pulled heavily by this novel even if the plot is a little by the numbers. The tearful finished to the novel almost makes up for the shortcomings.
That which you manifest is before you.
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