Book Title: The Art of Racing in the Rain
Author: Garth Stein
Publishing Company: HarperCollins Publishers
Year:  2008
# of Pages:   324
ISBN-13:  978-0061537934 
ISBN-10:  0061537934 

Reviewed By: Deborah Ground Buckner (Kansas City Correspondent - USA)

The Art of Racing in the Rain presents one of the most brilliant characters of recent fiction, Enzo.  Enzo is the narrator of the story, and Enzo is a dog.  As a child, I loved reading dog stories, particularly those such as Beautiful Joe which allowed the dog to tell his story in his own words.  Enzo's story, though, is a grown-up tale, demonstrating the wisdom of the ages that seems to rest within all dogs, peppered with bits of knowledge he has gleaned from his daily television watching and from his life with Denny, a race car driver. 

In the beginning, Enzo's life was just with Denny, from the time Denny selected the small pup.  The owners said Enzo was a shepherd-poodle mix, but Enzo is convinced his father was a terrier, a big, tough Airedale.  Enzo takes special pride in hearing people say he must be part terrier, for they are determined, problem-solving dogs.  Denny shares all of his life with Enzo, even explaining the details of the racing videos they watch together.  "Very gently.  Like there are eggshells on your pedals and you don't want to break them.  That's how you drive in the rain," Denny explains. 

When Eve comes into their lives, Enzo admits to initial feelings of resentment, but a relationship forms between them and, eventually, a closeness.  Then comes little Zoe, and Enzo becomes her protector.

Protector is a role he assumes for all of his family, through the difficult time of Eve's illness and the troubled events that follow.  Communicating only with gestures (always regretting his lack of thumbs and looking forward to the day when he will be reincarnated as a man, according to a legend he learned while watching a National Geographic special), Enzo manages to get the important points across to his people. 

Only a dog could tell a story of the humor and tragedy of life with such humanity.  The Art of Racing in the Rain will keep a reader cheering for Enzo through all the laps of life and will have the dog owner wondering of the story his own dear friend might tell. 

Garth Stein is the author of two previous novels, How Evan Broke His Head and Other Secrets (winner of a 2006 Pacific Northwest Booksellers Award) and Raven Stole the Moon.  He has also worked as a documentary filmmaker, director and producer on several films, including The Lunch Date, winner of an Academy Award for Live Action Short.