Enzo knows he is different from other dogs: a philosopher with a nearly human soul (and an obsession with opposable thumbs), he has educated himself by watching television extensively, and by listening very closely to the words of his master, Denny Swift, an up-and-coming race car driver.

Through Denny, Enzo has gained tremendous insight into the human condition, and he sees that life, like racing, isn't simply about going fast. Using the techniques needed on the race track, one can successfully navigate all of life's ordeals.

On the eve of his death, Enzo takes stock of his life, recalling all that he and his family have been through: the sacrifices Denny has made to succeed professionally; the unexpected loss of Eve, Denny's wife; the three-year battle over their daughter, Zoë, whose maternal grandparents pulled every string to gain custody. In the end, despite what he sees as his own limitations, Enzo comes through heroically to preserve the Swift family, holding in his heart the dream that Denny will become a racing champion with Zoë at his side. Having learned what it takes to be a compassionate and successful person, the wise canine can barely wait until his next lifetime, when he is sure he will return as a man.

A heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately uplifting story of family, love, loyalty, and hope, The Art of Racing in the Rain is a beautifully crafted and captivating look at the wonders and absurdities of human life . . . as only a dog could tell it.

...

A heart-wrenching but deeply funny and ultimately uplifting story of family, love, loyalty, and hope—a captivating look at the wonders and absurdities of human life . . . as only a dog could tell it

...

Enzo is a lab terrier mix plucked from a farm outside Seattle to ride shotgun with race car driver Denny Swift as he pursues success on the track and off. Denny meets and marries Eve, has a daughter, Zoë, and risks his savings and his life to make it on the professional racing circuit. Enzo, frustrated by his inability to speak and his lack of opposable thumbs, watches Denny's old racing videos, coins koanlike aphorisms that apply to both driving and life, and hopes for the day when his life as a dog will be over and he can be reborn a man. Description in Spanish: 'El arte de conducir bajo la lluvia lo tiene todo: amor, tragedia, redencion, peligro y lo mejor, el narrador canino Enzo, cuya alma de perro longevo tiene mucho que ensenarnos sobre el ser humano. En Mongolia, cuando un perro muere es enterrado en lo alto de la montana para que nadie pueda pisar su tumba. El dueno del perro le susurra al oido que desea que se reencarne, en su proxima vida, en un hombre. Hasta entonces, el alma del perro es libre de vagar por la tierra y sus paisajes, durante el tiempo que quiera. Solo algunos perros se reencarnan en hombres, unicamente los que estan listos para ello. Yo estoy listo. Esto lo aprendi viendo un programa de National Geographic en la television, asi que debe de ser verdad. Vivo con Danny, y he aprendido tanto de el, he aprendido los principios para ser un buen piloto de carreras. Equilibrio, anticipacion, paciencia. Estas son lecciones muy importantes, tanto para la vida como para una pista de carreras. Danny es un verdadero campeon, aunque no todos lo vean asi, porque Danny tiene responsabilidades. Tiene a su hija Zoe, y tiene a su esposa Eve. Y me tiene a mi. Lo que mas me gusta es correr por la hierba con la cabeza baja, sintiendo como las gotas de agua del rocio me salpican la cara. Me gusta correr y sentir todos los olores, toda la vida. Cuando yo regrese a este mundo voy a volver como un hombre, y voy a caminar entre vosotros. Voy a estrechar vuestras manos. Y cuando vea a un hombre, o a una mujer, o a un nino en problemas, voy a ofrecerle mi mano, a el, a ella, a ti. Al mundo. Voy a ser un buen ciudadano, un buen amigo en el camino de la vida que todos compartimos....

"Funny, bewitching, observant."-The Oregonian

"Hits all the frets of a powerful story: sharp-witted dialogue, vivid characters, insight into medical challenges and prose that snaps like well-placed plucks of guitar strings. . . . I hold up my lighter and turn it full-flame for [Garth] Stein's latest work. Encore!"-The Seattle Times

"Compelling."-Seattle Post-Intelligencer

"Stein handles the many narrative elements deftly."-Seattle Weekly

"An engrossing family drama."-Publishers Weekly

Evan had a hit single, but that was ten years ago. Thirty-one now, he's drifting, playing in a local band and teaching middle-aged men to coax music from an electric guitar.

Beset at a young age with a life-threatening form of epilepsy, he's kept his condition a secret. But his deepest secret is that he got his high school sweetheart pregnant. Then her conservative parents whisked her out of Seattle and out of Evan's life.

Now, fourteen years later, he experiences unplanned parenthood when he undertakes to raise the resentful teenage son he's never known.

Off beat and disarming, How Evan Broke His Head and Other Secrets portrays a contemporary American family with unfailing honesty.

Garth Stein, a former documentary filmmaker, was co-producer of an Academy Award-winning short film. How Evan Broke His Head and Other Secrets is his second novel; his first, Raven Stole the Moon, was published by Pocket Books. His third novel, The Art of Racing in the Rain, will be published by HarperCollins in 2008 and is being translated around the world. He lives in Seattle with his wife and children.

...