Eve is not welcomed by Enzo right away, but once she becomes pregnant with Zoë, she earns his trust and acceptance. Eveĭenny’s girlfriend, who eventually becomes his wife and the mother of his daughter, Zoë. Over the course of the novel, Denny transforms from a young bachelor to a responsible family man, but he never loses sight of his bond with Enzo, who was with him through it all.

Despite his devotion to being a husband and father, his in-laws look down on him for his blue-collar background and passion for racing. He specializes, as suggested by the novel's title, in racing in the rain. He works as a customer service technician at an auto-body shop specializing in high-end vehicles, but his true passion lies in racecar driving. His frustrations with his dog form and some human logic provide a sense of light humor throughout the novel. Enzo complains about his lack of thumbs and subpar eyesight throughout the story, explaining how dogs would be far more useful if they had functioning thumbs. His frustration about his body and its limitations grows with his increasing intelligence, and he expresses feelings of being trapped in his dog body. The development of his near-human sophisticated thought process began the day his owner Denny left the television on, and since that day he has watched educational programs to expand his knowledge while Denny works. He is convinced he has the soul of a human and desires to one day be reincarnated as one. He philosophizes about reincarnation and the meaning of life. A few mild sex scenes and sexual references.Enzo is the narrator of The Art of Racing in the Rain and a loyal, loving, and intelligent dog. Rated: Moderate: Some foul language, including the occasional F-word. This is a book to cherish, remember and reread in a few years. I loved everything about it: story, writing, characters and ending. Highly recommended. Wisdom, practical insight and humor grace almost every page. His love for his family is touching, and the trials they all face together are heart-wrenching, and, in turn, their triumphs heartwarming. Enzo, though a dog, is a deeply human and compassionate narrator. That should tell you all you need to know. When I finished this book I hugged it to my chest and wiped away a few stray tears. Because, after all, that is what a loyal dog does.

But Enzo will do anything he can to help protect them and love them. At first Enzo does not like the new woman in Denny’s life and is even more uncertain of the the baby that comes shortly after.

Denny Swift is an up-and-coming race car driver, and racing is everything to Denny and Enzo until Eve and Zoe come along. Enzo is dying. As the hand of old age tightens its grip, he looks back on his life with the Swifts, a young middle-class family living in Seattle.

Art of racing in the rain book review