the art of racing in the rain by garth stein ::: i would not describe myself as a 'dog person.' don't get me wrong, i love dogs, especially duncan and molly, but i typically don't pick up novels about dogs, and most definitely not novels told from the perspective of a dog. i absolutely loved this book. it was equal parts sweet and funny and equal parts sad and thoughtful. stein does an incredible job of writing through the eyes of enzo, the lovable pet of the swift family. i may never look at a dog the same way again. (i compare these feelings to those i felt after reading watership down.) i encourage anyone who is an animal lover to pick this book up. i don't want to give away a second of this sweet read.
everything changes by jonathan tropper ::: my obsession with jonathan tropper continues. by the end of fall i will have completed all of his novels and i can already see that i will be left craving more. i see that tropper is often compared to nick hornby, and i do agree with this to a certain extent, although i think that tropper is quite a bit more witty, and says the things that hornby never would. if you are a hornby fan, i would say give tropper a try. everything changes sticks to what tropper is great at; telling the story of a messed-up man in his early thirties. zack king's life is crumbling around him and hilarious hijinks ensue. zack's family and best friends are one hysterical cast of characters who keep the laughs coming, but still feel very relatable because they each face their own struggles. i fell in love with zack like i do with each of tropper's main characters. his struggles and triumphs are told through a voice that sounds so much like someone i've known my entire life. if you aren't on the tropper bandwagon yet, it's time.