The Art of Racing in the Rain
Have you ever wondered what goes through the mind of a dog? Do they have thoughts and emotions like humans do? The Art of Racing in the Rain, by Garth Stein, is about a dog named Enzo who hopes to one day become a human. Throughout his life, he observes the people around him and becomes very intelligent in terms of the ways of the world. He wants to share his feelings and knowledge, but is incapable of doing so. This story lets us in on what Enzo notices about all the events taking place in his life.
For example, when Enzo's owner, Denny, gets married and has a daughter, his wife, Eve, feels that Enzo may be a threat to Zoe. In one part of the book, it states, "Eve would admonish her: "Don't run like that; Enzo will bite you." Denny said, "Enzo would never hurt her, ever!" Still, Eve didn't know that, and I had no way of explaining it to her, so I never played rough with Zoe." This shows how Enzo is not a harmful dog, even Denny knows that he would never hurt Zoe. He has control over his wild, animal side, unlike most other dogs. However, Eve doesn't know that, and he can't tell her. All he can do is use physical motions to show her.
Another example is when Enzo notices that something bad is going to happen to Eve. In the book, it says, "Eve leaned down to give me my bowl of food and my nose was near her head. I had detected a bad odor, it came from her ears and her sinuses. Given a facile tongue, I could have warned them. I could have alerted them to her condition long before they discovered it with their machines." As you can see, Enzo, with his special dog senses, can detect lots of things before humans can, but there is no way for him to let Eve and Denny know. He can't even use his actions to show them this time. Eve is in serious danger, but all he can do is sit there and let it happen, there is nothing he can do to prevent it.
Overall, throughout the story, The Art of Racing in the Rain, you can really get a feel of Enzo's perspective and what he thinks about being a dog. He had always felt that he was different from other dogs, like a human soul stuffed into a body in which he didn't belong. He has a passion for being a human, but he feels trapped. He understands much more about the world than most people could ever imagine, but he is being held back from letting them know who he really is inside.
For example, when Enzo's owner, Denny, gets married and has a daughter, his wife, Eve, feels that Enzo may be a threat to Zoe. In one part of the book, it states, "Eve would admonish her: "Don't run like that; Enzo will bite you." Denny said, "Enzo would never hurt her, ever!" Still, Eve didn't know that, and I had no way of explaining it to her, so I never played rough with Zoe." This shows how Enzo is not a harmful dog, even Denny knows that he would never hurt Zoe. He has control over his wild, animal side, unlike most other dogs. However, Eve doesn't know that, and he can't tell her. All he can do is use physical motions to show her.
Another example is when Enzo notices that something bad is going to happen to Eve. In the book, it says, "Eve leaned down to give me my bowl of food and my nose was near her head. I had detected a bad odor, it came from her ears and her sinuses. Given a facile tongue, I could have warned them. I could have alerted them to her condition long before they discovered it with their machines." As you can see, Enzo, with his special dog senses, can detect lots of things before humans can, but there is no way for him to let Eve and Denny know. He can't even use his actions to show them this time. Eve is in serious danger, but all he can do is sit there and let it happen, there is nothing he can do to prevent it.
Overall, throughout the story, The Art of Racing in the Rain, you can really get a feel of Enzo's perspective and what he thinks about being a dog. He had always felt that he was different from other dogs, like a human soul stuffed into a body in which he didn't belong. He has a passion for being a human, but he feels trapped. He understands much more about the world than most people could ever imagine, but he is being held back from letting them know who he really is inside.
