Q&A with Garth Stein discussion

If you don't know what this thread is about, you haven't been doing your reading. Finish The Art of Racing in the Rain and get back to me!

That zebra scene was actually kind of creepy, even though it made perfect sense at the time I was reading it. Poor Enzo.

I used to think of zebras as such graceful creatures...
until I read "The Art of Racing in the Rain."

I really did love that book.

I loved the Zebra part! It makes me finally understand why dogs do some of the things they do: like ingest teddy bear arms-- true story.

The first zebra scene actually made me laugh out loud. I'm not sure if that was the intended reaction, but that was my reaction. I always knew there was something funny about zebras...

Maybe something is wrong with me but I found the whole zebra scene laugh out loud hilarious--very much like a small child trying to explain how that lamp got broken.
Lots of wonderful, meaningful wisdom in ARR but I use "Somewhere the zebra is dancing!" almost every day.

We all have our own personal zebras!

I also laughed out loud at the zebra scene. It reminded me so much of the way my dog acts around one of her toys!

Damn zebras.

I will admit the zebra scene was a little creepy, but if the thought process is really true, I guess my recliner and new rugs also came to life after I left for work one day :)

Every living creature is entitled to view the zebra from their own perspective. I laughed during that part, because it reminds me of how my dogs behave.

I loved the zebra scene as well! I think anyone familiar with dogs would have to laugh :)

The zebra scene takes Enzo the philosopher dog and lets him have a imaginary flight into Enzo "El Cane de la Mancha" battling his own windmills...
Don't we all need that at some point.
Imagination is our most precious gift!
Our Truffault, the doxie, the most reasoned, easy going well behaved dog has an almost religious 3 minute daily tug-a-rug with his rubber chicken, guarantees his sloth behavior for the rest of the day... Beats Prozac!
F1 Grand prix this week in our home town of Montreal. Alonzo is the most interesting driver of his generation ( usually drives cars below his talent a la Gilles Villeneuve and Senna)

Zebras are to Enzo as Clowns are to me (shudder).

I told my sister, "You must read this book. The zebra scene alone is reason enough, but also to fall in love with Enzo." She read it a few weeks ago and love love loves Enzo as much as I do. Thank you, Garth! Go Enzo!!

I have Enzo quotes on my desk right next to the Ernest Shackleton quotes--the zebra quote is at the top!
KimKirt: My husband feels the same way about clowns!
Patrick: My husband and I will be in Montreal for the Grand Prix. What an exciting year! Fernando looks mighty fine in red. Go Ferrari!

I really loved this book and, of course, Enzo. :)

I race a 1967 Porsche 911 with vintage race groups and NASA. Aside from all the standard things I liked about this book, I was very impressed with the accuracy of all of your road racing descriptions. Have you done any racing, or are you just a well informed fan?

Hi, Garth!

My book club read "Racing" this month, we're actually meeting next week to talk about it. I was wondering how you chose the personality of Enzo? I felt like his personality is similar to what I dreamed my dog was always thinking (or simply, that she had thoughts). Was Enzo inspired by a real dog? Or even a person?

Also, the Zebra. I LOVE the Zebra. If you had a dog, I'm sure the scenes were inspired by him/her. I felt you did such a wonderful job capturing, maybe what a dog feels, but also what we want them to have felt. No one wants their dog to have chosen to destroy a beloved stuffed animal, you always want them to have intended something else, or not intended it at all. Excellent work!

This doesn't change my feelings about zebras one bit! ;) It makes me wonder if this was a necessary part of the transition of Enzo's psyche into something more human than he all ready was at this point... or...was this the animal within (without?)coming out uncontrollably to express rage at being abandoned?...or was this an emergence of "human" paranoia brought on by sensory deprivation?
It certainly made me love Enzo more for his frailties as well as his super dog abilities.
Hmmmmm...what was your motivation for this scene then Garth?

Dear Garth,

I have so many things to say. (Didn't find another place to post this:) I am in love with ''The Art Of Racing In The Rain''. I love reading and I've read many books since I was little. I was searching for a book to buy in the bookstore and I just found it. This one is definitely one of my favourite. I cried so much while reading it. Probably more than i cried with any else book. I guess it's because I'm so obsessed with dogs and I was really touched by Enzo's life and his strong connection with Denny. I highly recommend it to all of my friends. Just wanted to give you a huge thank you for writing it and sharing it with us. Keep up the good job :D

thanks so much, me :)

P.S. 1) The zebra scene was so real, I was actually scared myself!
2) My favourite is chapter 23 where Eve asks Enzo to help her make it through the night. Such a vivid scene, impossible to forget. Thanks for moments like that.

Oh, i forgot to mention that I am actually thinking of adopting another dog, which will be named Enzo of course :D

Hello!
Not only did I love the Zebra parts in your book but i really feel in love with all the characters! I have three dogs and I completely understand the human side of things - but really enjoyed your interruption of the dog's side/reaction.

I am curious as well as to how you came up with Enzo and his personality. You made a book about a dog telling the story- extremely entertaining and hard to put down. What made you decide to tell the story from a dog's perspective?
One of my favorite books this year! Looking forward to reading more of your work...

in addition to motivation for the scene, why a zebra and not a more "traditional" stuffed animal like a bear?

I heard an interview that you gave, Garth, I think with Nancy Pearl where you talked about the zebra scene having started with a simple character sketch of Enzo. At what point did you know that it would be integral to the story, and the character? It's such a great scene, and clearly anyone with a dog is familiar, so I'm very curious about the art and craft of putting it all together.

Patrick wrote: "The zebra scene takes Enzo the philosopher dog and lets him have a imaginary flight into Enzo "El Cane de la Mancha" battling his own windmills...
Don't we all need that at some point.
Imagination..."

Alonzo is a great one!

Mike wrote: "I really loved this book and, of course, Enzo. :)

I race a 1967 Porsche 911 with vintage race groups and NASA. Aside from all the standard things I liked about this book, I was very impressed wi..."

I raced with SCCA for four years. Spec Miata. You know, those annoying little cars that can kick your butt through the turns but can't pull on the straights? (Porsche drivers hate SMers! Tee-hee-hee!)

Linda wrote: "This doesn't change my feelings about zebras one bit! ;) It makes me wonder if this was a necessary part of the transition of Enzo's psyche into something more human than he all ready was at this p..."

Don't we all make mistakes, screw things up sometimes, and then blame some outside source? "You made me do it." "If you hadn't said this, I would have said that." Etc. We often blame others for our own misdeeds and misfortune. Enzo wants us to expose our own inner demons!

Joanna wrote: "Oh, i forgot to mention that I am actually thinking of adopting another dog, which will be named Enzo of course :D"

;-)

Linda wrote: "in addition to motivation for the scene, why a zebra and not a more "traditional" stuffed animal like a bear?"

Oh, come on! Would a bear ever do that to a Barbie doll?

Jen wrote: "I heard an interview that you gave, Garth, I think with Nancy Pearl where you talked about the zebra scene having started with a simple character sketch of Enzo. At what point did you know that it..."

Ah, yes! Once I finished the scene, I realized I had really hit on something I could use throughout the book. I had no idea there was going to be a zebra in the story until I had written that chapter!

You can find that interview on the Seattle Channel. (I think you can link to it from my website, too. Yes. Go here and scroll down to the video interviews.... http://www.garthstein.com/media/cover...

I read The Art at the same time that my son was starting kart racing. Knowing nothing about racing previously, this book was a tutorial for me in many ways! Now I can guide my son with wisdom such as "the car goes where the eyes go" and he thinks I'm a genius! I loved this book for that and so many other reasons, including the zebra. I just added your other books to my "to read" list.

The Art of Racing in the Rain is one of the best books I've ever read (and I've been reading for over 50 years)! Love, love, love Enzo! I was just thinking about the zebra scene yesterday--it really did give me insight into what goes through my dog's mind.
I'm a dog lover anyway, and this book is a must-read for anyone who loves dogs. I posted a love letter to The Art on my blog a while back.
Thank you for writing this wonderful story!

Garth,

Do you have a dog?

I found the zebra passages disturbing. And the aftermath, when Denny hits Enzo really stuck with me. I've thought of that passage again and again, because I've been so angry with my dogs for things they have done at some point in our lives together. It's so difficult to try to see the situation from their point of view and understand why they do things sometimes.

Hi Garth....I loved TAORITR! I am curious too if you have a dog. The Zebra scene was great. We actually took our kids on a drive-thru safari in Texas and I told the kids "don't worry...Zebra's are shy." Well...they're not!!! They stuck their heads right in our car and took the food right off our laps!!! You pegged them right!!!

I actually loved the whole zebra thing. I often ask my dogs what they're thinking--now I know what goes through the younger one's mind when she's alone! I also have a black lab/golden mix and my daughter's boyfriend always says she looks as if she's about to say something. I read Enzo as my Kasie and loved, loved, loved your book.

I marked the passage about "heroes" because I teach 12th grade English and our wholel 1st semester focuses on heroes. I would like to add this to my "food for thought" ideas.

SMs are fun. I have raced against (and beat :) ) them in NASA and have done some high-performance driving instruction for novices in one. I have considered getting one as the maintenance costs of a vintage 2.0L 911 are rather high. Along the same lines, I have given some thought to an FV.

If you ever feel like running a race in Colorado, let me know. At least in my vintage group (RMVR), many have read and love ARR.

Now I have to go read your other books.

Cayr wrote: "Garth,

Do you have a dog?



Of course. Check my icon. That's my dog, Comet.

Shelli wrote: "Hi Garth....I loved TAORITR! I am curious too if you have a dog. The Zebra scene was great. We actually took our kids on a drive-thru safari in Texas and I told the kids "don't worry...Zebra's are ..."

Never trust a zebra....

P wrote: "I actually loved the whole zebra thing. I often ask my dogs what they're thinking--now I know what goes through the younger one's mind when she's alone! I also have a black lab/golden mix and my da..."

I do a talk about The Hero's Journey using Enzo and Buck from The Call of the Wild as examples. One day I'll podcast it and put it on my website.

That would be awesome! Thanks.

Garth,
Something comes to mind that I kept on wondering while and after reading "The Art of Racing in the Rain"...
If Enzo's next incarnation (and dogs in general) was to become a human...where do cats fit in?
...am an animal lover and watcher in general and not stuck on cats in particular.

Patrick Dempsey as Denny, Enzo in flesh uncast--who will be Enzo as narrator? His is the pivotal voice of book---feels like the movie version may rest a great deal on the voice-over. I definitely "hear" Enzo in a particular way; will be disappointed if his movie voice gets too cute or too snarky.

LindaB wrote: "Garth,
Something comes to mind that I kept on wondering while and after reading "The Art of Racing in the Rain"...
If Enzo's next incarnation (and dogs in general) was to become a human...where do ..."

I had to do an interview "as Enzo." (Don't ask!)

Interviewer: "Cats: Take them or leave them?"

Enzo: "Take them and leave them where? I'd be happy to."

I loved the book!!! he zebra scene was probably the weirdest and most creative part! Good Job!!

I have to admit, the zebra made this book a 5-star book. Sure, Enzo struggles with life, family drama... but nothing so embodies that struggle than The Evil Zebra. Brilliant!

I loved the zebra scene as well. You really got into the dog mind in this book, I loved every minute of my time with Enzo! Read this scene out loud to my daughter and we laughed and laughed. So typical of her now-deceased Beagle, who used to periodically "lose it" on the weirdest most innocent household items.
Can't wait to read your next novel.

I read The Art of Racing in the Rain, hmm, almost EXACTLY a year ago. And I have to say, still thinking of the zebra makes me laugh. I was amazed when Enzo saw the zebra floating in the zoo pen. I was like, "Oh no!!! Not the zebra again! This can't be good." It was very clever to include the zebra like that, I wish I could put that kind of clever thinking into my writing...

You guys have been great. The zebra has taken on a life of its own, clearly!

But remember what Enzo teaches us: The zebra is us! Sometimes, we are our own worst enemy. So face the zebra, overcome your fears, and let yourself succeed! By being true to yourself, you will gain much. As Don Kitch says: "There is no shame in losing the race. There is only shame in not racing because you are afraid to lose!"

So get out on the track and start racing! That's where you belong!

Garth wrote: "You guys have been great. The zebra has taken on a life of its own, clearly!

But remember what Enzo teaches us: The zebra is us! Sometimes, we are our own worst enemy. So face the zebra, ove..."

Garth, your wisdom astounds me and your book moved me to tears. I having been trying to come up with an intelligent, witty piece to add to some of these threads and can think of none. Bravo.

The bond between Eve and Enzo is so strong, shared in her refusal to talk to a doctor about the "symptoms" of the evil disease and his silence, unable to tell Denny how sick she really was.

Enzo knew that women and dogs understand things on a different level, the systemic more than symptomatic, while men try to drive through the problems they can't fix.

Enzo saw the evil and he knew it was real. It wasn't just a story or a scary movie that we humans put on a shelf. Even if Enzo could have told Denny about the demon Eve was fighting, he realized that Denny wouldn't have wanted to hear it. He believed what Eve wanted him to believe, that it was just a virus, not a killer demon that she struggled with in screams and silence. Eve knew a doctor would have just given her symptoms a name, an excuse for being unable to "cure" her. She preferred to keep her "hope."


Enzo knew that Denny hadn't hit "him." He had struck out at the evil, the dark creature that had come into their house. And it was Eve who protected Enzo from Denny's rage. Enzo took the blame for the evil but he couldn't protect her from it. He wished he would have eaten the zebra when he had the chance, even if it had killed him. We all have our own zebra but Enzo survived by letting his out and confronting it.

What a dog ! What a story ! What a writer ! Wonderful stuff here.