Trish and Maxwell initiate proceedings to sue Denny for custody of Zoe. She holds a party to celebrate life, and promptly dies. Annika takes some sexual liberties with an exhausted and partially-unconscious Denny, but he puts a stop to it and sees her home to her parents.Įve reaches a point where she has outlived her prognosis by one day. He leaves early to beat a storm, and Annika manipulates the course of events to join him for the long ride back. Throughout this period of time, Denny grows more distant from Eve.ĭenny takes a trip for Presidents’ Day, where 15 year-old Annika develops a crush on him. They later convince Denny to let Zoe join her mother for what time she has left. She goes to the hospital, where doctors confirm the presence of a mass in her brain.Īs Eve recuperates and comes to terms with the reality of her condition, her parents (Trish and Maxwell) convince Denny to let Eve remain with them. Just as Eve’s condition seems to be improving, she falls and hits her head on a rock. His absence and Eve’s sickness put their marriage through a stress test. Meanwhile, Denny leaves on racing tours for longer and longer periods of time. Eve enlists Enzo to be Zoe’s protector, which offers him a renewed sense of purpose.Įnzo smells a sickness in Eve’s head, but his inability to communicate on a human level means he cannot warn anyone of her condition in time to treat it. Enzo feels threatened by her presence and the control she exerts over their home life, but warms to her when she becomes pregnant with Denny’s daughter, Zoe. The developing trust between Enzo and Denny gets momentarily interrupted by the appearance of Eve, Denny’s future wife. Enzo is able to digest racing practices into profound philosophies of life. These side-chapters always manage to intersect with the rest of the plot on a thematic level.

He focuses instead on his puppy years, valued time spent with Denny, and his own ruminations about the racing world. Their favorite pastime is watching footage of past races.Įnzo regularly diverts the narrative away from the central flow of the plot. He believes that reincarnation into a human body is his ultimate destination.ĭenny is a racecar driver, and Enzo shares his master’s affinity for vehicles. Though the reader lacks the context of these two characters, the depth of Enzo’s perspective conveys two germane facts: he is as smart as a human, and he is ready to die. The story opens at a later point in time relative to the rest of the book, with Enzo past his prime and Denny a father and widower. Enzo is a thoughtful, energetic dog living in Seattle with his master, Dennis “Denny” Swift.

Garth stein racing in the rain