The book isn’t so much trying to tug at your heartstrings as it is desperately yanking at them in a deranged fervor.

But the questionable aspects of this book went beyond all that, and they just kept piling up.įor starters, this book shot so far past just being sappy that it started to edge into seeming emotionally manipulative.įrom the sentimentality of a dog-narrated story, to the dead wife (this is not a spoiler, we find this out in the first few pages), to the plainly unfair and outrageous situation that Denny finds himself in, to the two-dimensional villains in the story, to the helpless little girl whose only desire is to see her dog and her father, to the highs and lows of car racing. I went into this knowing it would be a little sappy and the dog-narrator thing was too gimmicky for my tastes and mentally prepared myself to just let it go and enjoy the story. You also find out that Eve, Denny’s wife, has passed away, so that should give you some sense of where there story is going. See The Art of Racing in the Rain on Amazon.įrom the very first chapter, the book sets forth the uncomplicated, boundless love Enzo (the dog) has for Denny and the uncomplicated, boundless love that Denny has for Enzo. It’s a story about love, loss, triumphs, grief, family, hardships and of course racing. He narrates the story about his life with Denny, plus Denny’s wife Eve and daughter Zoe, and everything that’s happened in their time together. When the book opens, Enzo is near the end of his life. Enzo is a dog who was adopted by a race car driver, Denny.

The Art of Racing in the Rain is narrated by Enzo. Plot Summaryįor the Detailed Plot Summary, click here or scroll all the way down. This isn’t generally the type of book I like, but I thought I’d give this a shot anyway. I love Marley & Me, another movie about dogs and life (plus Jennifer Aniston is awesome in it), so I’m planning on seeing this one as well. I always plan on reading books before the movie comes out, but this time I actually did it, yay! The movie adaptation of Garth Stein’s The Art of Racing n the Rain is being released on August 9th.

Dog book racing in the rain