In her witty, heartwarming 11th novel, Dog Person, Camille Pagán (Good for You) explores the challenges of navigating grief and finding new love--through the eyes of man's best friend.
Since his person, romance novelist Amelia May, died, aging rescue dog Harold has been trying his best to take care of her widowed partner, Miguel. Amelia had charged Harold with helping Miguel find love again after her death, but that's proving difficult; Miguel subsists mostly on cereal and rarely leaves the house, even to tend to Lakeside Books, the Michigan bookstore he and Amelia cofounded. Then, a reclusive author fails to show up for his event, leaving the store in financial trouble, so Harold and Miguel take off for Chicago to find out why. When, instead, they find the author's charming but guarded sister, Fiona, and her precocious tween daughter, Amelia Mae, Harold must employ all his canine ingenuity to fulfill his Amelia's last wish.
Pagán's narrative unfolds in Harold's voice, including sly observations about odd human habits and judgments of people based on their kindness (and dispensing of treats or belly rubs). As Harold and Amelia Mae scheme to nudge Miguel and Fiona closer to each other, Harold is forced to confront his own physical limitations, even as Miguel may finally be emerging from his grief. The supportive staff of booksellers at Lakeside makes a charming addition to a novel that celebrates love in all its forms: platonic, romantic, communal, literary, and--of course--the enduring love of a good dog. --Katie Noah Gibson, blogger at Cakes, Tea and Dreams