The Art of Racing in the Rain: A Novel (original 2008; edition 2009)

Excellent, excellent, excellent! I was afraid, at first, that I would cry my entire way through the book. I'd barely hit page 7 before I was gulping back a few sobs...so, would the rest of the book be one tear-jerking sob-fest? No. It's funny, witty, heart-wrenching, and exceptionally well-written. If you like dogs, if you like racing, if you like racing dogs, if you like race car drivers, if you like race car drivers with dogs...you get my point, right? READ THIS BOOK. ( )

Besides the great reviews, I bought this book because I am a dog lover. I was not disappointed. I have always felt that dogs have much to tell us about living, and Enzo, the dog in this story, is wise and philosophical. His observations are amusing, heartbreaking, and very accurate. Limited as he is in a dog's body, he finds ways to express himself that are downright hysterical at times. He is an observant and entertaining narrator to a story that encompasses terminal illness and an ugly custody battle. He is strong for his master, Denny, and finds ways to encourage him and keep him fighting when he otherwise would've given up. The book was well-written, and Enzo was impossible not to love. Discussion ideas: Reincarnation, thoughts of dogs, and auto-racing. Favorite words: Lugubrious and implacable. Overall philosophy: Your car goes where your eyes go or that which you manifest is before you. An engaging read! ( )

I was rather sceptical about The Art of Racing in the Rain. I continued to be so as I read, even when I was more than halfway through. It bothered me: the description of Eve's illness, the situation with Annika. And I wasn't sure I was getting much out of it in return for getting so unsettled. I didn't think that much of the narration -- the conceit of a dog narrating the story. Parts just didn't go together: you can't have a really smart dog with ideas on philosophy who then gets confused about really simple things. Neither rang true.

But somewhere, around three quarters of the way through, I really began to care. And the emotional punches began to hit, until somewhere in the last fifty pages I found that I was tearing up that little bit (and I needed to blow my nose: gross, but true).

It's still, honestly, a bit thin. The central conceit, Enzo's narration, it really didn't work for me. The story itself is believable, but the choice of narrator nearly killed it for me, before I even picked it up. It's also totally unsurprising, in everything that happens, but the end borders on painfully cliché. I still liked it, in the moment, but it's a flaw.

It's not something I'll reread, and I'm not sure I'd recommend it, but I'm glad I read through to the end. ( )

I resisted reading this because I had seen it EVERYWHERE (and who wants to be mainstream?)
But I'm so glad I did.
It was the perfect vacation read while I was missing my own dog. I don't believe he is quite so philosophical as Enzo, but then, perhaps he would surprise me if he were to narrate his own story.
The epilogue was a little neater than I would have liked, but overall such an affirming story. ( )

I might even give it 4.5 stars. Everyone needs an Enzo, the dog through whose eyes this story is told. I very much enjoyed Enzo's simple and heartfelt, yet somewhat philosophic narration of the events that unfold before him. Through his eyes, you are able to care for Denny, Eve, and Zoe, his people. I had been a little unsure of how much I would like it at first, because Denny is a racecar driver, a hobby in which I have close to zero interest. But the racing doesn't take over the story, and it takes place in Seattle, far from the NASCAR-crazed South, giving it a different air-and I think it's a different style of racing entirely. Despite that, I felt myself drawn to all four characters and crying, rejoicing, and running through the park with them. ( )