Art of Racing in the Rain - Discussion Begins!
I am probably going to be the outcast here but I did not love the book like it seems most people did  I found it difficult to read about a dog that can tell me what his feelings are...I don't want to know I guess how sad my dog is when left alone...how he feels the pain of people around him...it was upsetting to me to think my dogs feel this way when home alone...I didn't like the way the family treated him often...leaving him alone for days with no food or water...or the way his Master hit him after the stuffed animal disaster...I didn't enjoy most of the book...And the racing part...was not for me. I didn't even like that the dog was made to go through the fear of racing...I don't know...the whole thing made me uncomfortable...I did not of course enjoy the ending but the very last part was uplifting...To think our dogs come back as humans is a wonderful idea. But only if they come back to me! I know my thoughts are probably not the norm on this book, but not every book is for everyone! |
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| I have to agree. The book was a slow read. I like books that drag me in and won't let go and this one didn't do it for me. I'm not into racing so that was out. It did make me sad what dogs do alone. I thought they just slept. And the hitting...don't go for that. I was thinking that the custudy battle was going to be interesting but that just kind of dragged along. I did like the shat part for payback though. Alot of times for interesting books I read them again or just parts and I don't think I will be re-visiting this one again. |
| For me it was a fast read! I completely enjoyed the range of emotions the dog underwent, not unlike what we go through daily. Being left alone for 4 days, the extremity due to illness was a reversal of the relationship the lady would have with the dog later. The stuffy event....hitting the dog.......that was very real to me. Haven't you seen dogs hit and felt pain knowing the dog also is in pain, confusion, etc? All of these are to show the range of emotions we as humans go through and, apparently according to the author, so do dogs. Whether you believe or not, it still made for an emotional roller coaster. The racing scene, the dog (we are lead to believe) completely enjoyed himself. The whole book was to put us inside a dog...at least the author's opinion...and the life experiences. Yes, the dog dies, that was tough, but you knew it was coming from the opening chapter. I enjoyed this book more than the first, The Search, with it's rather predictable story and conclusion. At least this was different. |
| I find it a pretty fast read. The first chapter was hard because it talks of a dog's final weeks/days, and of his knowledge that his end is near and that he wants to release his master. I think the book is very well written. Then I devoured the next several chapters--haven't finished but will very soon. I could see how one could object to the author making the dog too human. But I loved seeing the world through the eyes of the dog. I know that my own dogs seem to be very perceptive of our feelings, our moods, our emotional needs, good and bad. That rang very true. And we know that some dogs are very good at sensing when there is a serious health issue. Some dogs (other animals, too, I think) can sense a seizure coming on for one of their humans, and some dogs seem to be able to detect cancer far in advance of any medical tests or even symptoms. So that made sense, as well. I am not a racing fan, but I enjoy reading about how the dog and his man shared the passion, how Enzo came to accept Eve, how he fell in love with the baby, and saw it as his duty to take care of her. I know our first OES definitely took it upon himself to take care of the children, even when they were no longer children. And me. Am looking forward to the rest. |
| This is why I love discussions! Its so interesting how different people view the same things. I might add....I always did leave the TV on for my dogs. Just thinking the voices and noise would keep them company as if others were home with them...After reading this book, I'm thinking...maybe I should leave the cooking channel on and they can learn a few things!  |
Quote: I'm thinking...maybe I should leave the cooking channel on and they can learn a few things! GROAN.......it's bad enough "What's ya makin' can I taste???" allowing them to learn I'd have to content with, "You call that dice, it's a sloppy chop! You gonna use that wine with that........remember if it isn't drinkable....." |
| I did enjoy this book and found it to be a fast read. I am fascinated and study how 'people' think--so it was very interesting to me to read a story from the dog's perspective. I am not a huge racing fan but am a big sports fan--so I enjoyed Enzo's perspective on 'racing and life'. I do think that sports offer many life lessons--no matter the sport. I was amused by his description of the 'twins' and his matter of fact description of events surrounding them. His honest assessment of them and the humor behind the descriptions--to me showed his sense of humor--even in a bad situation. As the story progressed he did begin to refer to them as the 'evil twins' and recognized the hurtfulness of their 'human' behavior. I suspected that they would become a big part of his story from the way he described their actions after Zoe's birth. His account of the 'zebra' incident and the crows"--I think-- was the author's way of making sure that he never became 'too human' and brought the reader back to the fact that the story was from a dog's perspective. I did love the references as to what he learned from the TV shows--he even referenced 'This Old House" when describing the house. I have often wondered what they take in from TV--LOL--because mine DO watch a lot of TV and I do leave the TV on for them when I am gone or if I am busy, and never feel any guilt about the 'TV being the babysitter'! I was touched by his feelings and sensitivity to Denny's financial situation when he described his accident with the car and the trip to the vet after--when he witnessed the dialog between the vet and Denny when it came time to pay--then later referring to the fact that he did not want to 'cost' Denny another cent. To me this referenced that possibly our dog's don't just pick up on our emotions--but actually recognize different circumstances and our emotions attached to those circumstances. I could go on but will wrap it up by saying that the true wisdom of the book is..."what you manifest is before you"--"your car goes where your eyes go". I do believe on many levels--"What we think about we bring about"--so I related to that theme and loved how the author brought it full circle when at the end Denny met Enzo the child. My thought was well "he finally has thumbs"! And I loved the line toward the end of the book--"There is no dishonor in losing the race. There is only dishonor in not racing because you are afraid to lose." Much wisdom in the statement above--about life's journey! All in all I did enjoy the book!  |
| I'm not quite done reading, but I enjoy the book. I would like to think that dogs understand our world and their place in it. But I also think we need to spend more time being like a dog and living in the moment - whatever it has to offer rather than worrying about the past and the future. I liked the part of Enzo going racing with Denny and could imagine that he truly enjoyed it. Just watching our dogs stick their heads of the window and smile as we drive down the street makes it possible that Enzo did enjoy the racing. I got a kick out of the Zebra incident - so that explains the stuffy killers among us. Finally I agree with Sheepiezone that the true wisdow of the book is "that which we manifest is before us", which I think certainly ties into the living in the moment notion. |
| Yes, I think we can learn alot about life from our dogs...the living in the moment is a wonderful idea..but unfortunately in the human world, if we truly live live in the moment, our future would be dismal to say the least...Life in the moment...no worries about paying bills...no worries about how we will pay those bills once we stop working...Life in the moment...no worries about who will take care of things once we are gone...m Who cares if I owe my life savings to credit cards....Pay the mortgage? Who cares? The oil can sit in the car another few months..., the bills can sit on the table while the bill collectors call... who cares....I would LOVE to live life in the moment...even just for a moment! But in real human life, that idea is impossible! But dogs do live that way, don't they? And they lofe the simple things....the air blowing in their face out the car window...the running free without a leash...the time spent with their humans doing nothing...If we could all live like our dogs would be a wonderful world! |
| I know we must live our lifes thinking about the future - bills, commitments, obligations. I think that what the book was trying to point out is that we spend too much time worrying about the future and not enough time enjoying the simple things in the moment. Thinks like watching the joy of our dog sticking their head out the window, or truly being present in the situations with our family and friends, enjoying a carefree relaxing moment and not feeling guilty about it. Too often we spend all of our time thinking about the future problems when we don't even know for sure what those problems will be. We do need to tend to our future but we also need to make some time in our lives to live like our dogs - carefree. |
Little Lizzy wrote: I know we must live our lifes thinking about the future - bills, commitments, obligations. I think that what the book was trying to point out is that we spend too much time worrying about the future and not enough time enjoying the simple things in the moment. Thinks like watching the joy of our dog sticking their head out the window, or truly being present in the situations with our family and friends, enjoying a carefree relaxing moment and not feeling guilty about it. Too often we spend all of our time thinking about the future problems when we don't even know for sure what those problems will be. We do need to tend to our future but we also need to make some time in our lives to live like our dogs - carefree. I agree-- a very wise mentor once told me that 99% of what we worry about never comes to pass--I have given that statement a LOT OF THOUGHT and 100% agree. Living in the moment doesn't mean that we neglect our responsibilities-- You are right on Lizzy--enjoy the moments and let go of guilt! |
I need to learn that concept...No kidding...I am one of those nervous nelly types..worried about everything...worried about what if this and what if that...I ahve a friend who is the complete opposite...and I always tell people, we all need alittle "Darlene" in us ( my friend)...Now, knowing I need to be a bit like that, and understanding I should be like that, how does one go about changing their mind set to that?????  |
Ashley wrote: I need to learn that concept...No kidding...I am one of those nervous nelly types..worried about everything...worried about what if this and what if that...I ahve a friend who is the complete opposite...and I always tell people, we all need alittle "Darlene" in us ( my friend)...Now, knowing I need to be a bit like that, and understanding I should be like that, how does one go about changing their mind set to that????? Ashley--It really is a process--not really changing everything but making small changes that matter. My friend that told me that 99% of what we worry about never comes to pass--18 years ago now--gave me an exercise that really sounds silly--but did have an impact on my thinking. She said for three weeks do this: every time you start to worry about something--write it down and put it in a box ( she had me decorate a shoe box--much like we did with the old valentine boxes--but it was to be a 'worry box'. After you write it down and put it in the box--move on and think of other things and work on other things. Do this for a week--and then on Saturday or Sunday--make a cup of tea or coffee (whichever you prefer) sit down in a comfortable place and take out your worry box. Open it and go through each written piece of paper one by one--on a legal pad make a note as to whether it happened or did not happen. After you have looked at each piece of paper--throw them away and then start the next week of 'worries' . Repeat for three weeks--four if you need to.It sounds really silly--but it did help me to recognize that so many things that we worry about--never happen. What it really did for me was raise my awareness level and it gave me a perspective that I use today. So many times we worry about what we cannot control--there are things that we should be concerned about--but worrying takes a lot of energy and really does rob us of enjoying the 'moment'. If you are game--try that little exercise--at the very least you will have everything written down. That exercise didn't miraculously solve the problem--but it was a start of being aware of what is a real important concern and what is not. |
| Finished last night after work. I really enjoyed the book, and enjoyed seeing the world through Ezno's eyes. Some good life lessons, as mentioned earlier. One thing I don't think was mentioned was why we root for some over others. We root for those we see overcome terrible obstacles, and not those who seem to have a very smooth path before them. This was discussed using two race car drivers as examples, and then, of course, there was Denny's struggles to succeed, after crushing blows: some bad luck on the tracks, financial issues to fund his racing career, his wife's illness and death, a terrible and destructive false accusation against him; a horrendous custody battle and again: huge, crushing financial issues related to the all of this. BUT I can't help but feel it was all heavy handed. I would have liked to see more finesse, more subtlety. Loved the ending and also loved much of the language the author used to describe people, feelings, events. |
| Karen, I will try the exercise! Anything that can make me be less worried about things is worth a try!Do I have to decorate the shoe box??? |
| I just finished it. Quite the pile of tissues through part of it. I agree with there being some lack of finesse, but it was still a good book. Some excess with the stereotypes with the rich in-laws, but I guess it could happen. Kind of odd how his parents pop in like that too. I enjoyed the end with the "pay it forward" message. |
Ashley wrote: Karen, I will try the exercise! Anything that can make me be less worried about things is worth a try!Do I have to decorate the shoe box??? Try it for 3 weeks and see if it helps!Box of your choice should work decorated or not! Seriously--I will be glad to answer any questions for you--pm me if you want. |
| This was in the city newspaper: http://www.startribune.com/lifestyle/133272783.html |
| What a coincidence we just finished this book and here comes the author helping out a shleter! Great article. Thanks for finding it for us! Are you going to meet him? |
| No, it's a two hour drive each way for me and I have to work. But pretty cool. Nice to know when people put their efforts towards good causes. And it was a fun coincidence. |
| Wonderful book! What I loved the most about it is that it's full of positivism. Even the bad guys, "the twins", were not inherently bad. They were simply short-sided. And yes, it's true: "the car goes where the eyes go". |
| I read this over the Memorial Day weekend earlier this year and could not put it down and won't soon forget it. Then I lent it to a couple of friends, whose reactions were, basically, "meh!" So different strokes for different folks. I had lost my oldest dog and first-ever male last December in much the same way Enzo went - I had told him it was OK to go if he had to, and he went the next day. So the last few pages were very, very difficult to get through (although the ending was totally worth it). I also did amateur sports car racing when I was MUCH younger, so I totally related to that part. I learned a lot of life lessons from racing, as you do in all sports, and took the racing part - and the whole book, for that matter - to be a metaphor. As several others have pointed out, I thought the whole point of the book was the message contained in the repeated phrase "the car goes where the eyes go." In fact, our thoughts do become actions, just as Enzo so wanted to become a human, his thoughts became actions in the end. I have really enjoyed everyone's comments and reactions to the book and can't wait to get it back from the friend who currently has it so I can re-read it again! |
Susan, you were a race car driver  |
Quote: Susan, you were a race car driver Yep, I was. It was a lot of fun and I have some great experiences and memories. |
| COOL! |
| I finally got the book from the library but still refuse to read it. Carl is reading it and seems to be enjoying it and tells me interesting things but not the sad stuff. |
| Sorry coming late to the party but my life got in the way. Read the book weeks ago and really enjoyed it. The premise was great. Didn't like the twins or their insensitivity to try and take away the child after the guy had lost his wife. How selfish can you get? Loved how the guy perservered and won in the end. I'm of course a sucker for a happy ending. Loved all the things from Enzo's perspective. Loved how he thought. Absolutely loved the ending! |
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