George is a grumpy, belligerent old man who has just lost his wife. She has left him notes around the home and a miniature dachshund puppy called Poppy. But George doesn’t want a dog, he wants to fight everyone who is trying to help him.

Dan has OCD but has channeled his energy into his career as a therapist. Afraid to acknowledge his true feelings, his most meaningful relationship so far is with his dog Fitz. That is, until Atticus walks into his life.

Lizzie is living in a women’s refuge with her son Lenny. Her body is covered in scars and she has shut herself off from the world. She distrusts dogs, but when she starts having to walk the refuge’s dog, Maud, things begin to change.

As three strangers’ lives unravel and intersect, they ultimately must accept what fate has in store for them with their dogs by their sides. Set against the backdrop of Brighton, Dog Days is an inspiring, unflinching, and deeply moving novel about life, and the way dogs can help us understand it, and each other, a little better.

My Thoughts:

In this story we follow three people’s lives, dogs are part of each person’s story. George is a grumpy old man but when you read about his story, you can kind of see why. His story for me was the saddest and I wished for better things for him. His late wife had a dog and he doesn’t want anything to do with it until his saviour comes along and basically gives him a shove in the right direction. Lizzie has a son called Lenny and they are living in a women’s refuge, she has had alot to deal with in the past and is trying to put a brave face on for the sake of her son but can she really? she starts walking Maud and it makes a real difference to her life. Dan is a therapist who can’t admit his own feelings, he has his own dog that is always there for him until a man walks into his life and his chair, can he bring himself to admit his feelings or will he miss out on something that he has always wanted? Bringing these three people and their lives including all the dogs involved makes this book really stand out for me, dogs have their way of bringing people out of their shell in the best way possible. I liked how we weaved through George, Lizzie and Dan’s story and it wasn’t hard to keep up, I really enjoyed reading this story and found it inventive.

I received an ARC copy of this book for an honest review. Thank you to Netgalley and ST. Martin’s Griffin.

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