Dog Days / ERICKA WALLER

George is a grumpy, belligerent old man and 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 channelled 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 the world. She distrusts dogs - 'there is so little people can control, not even themselves, but they still place faith in the flesh eating descendants of wolves' - but when she starts having to walk the refuge's dog Maud, things begin to change. Dog Days is a heartwarming, and deeply moving novel about the challenges life can bring, what goes wrong when we suffer in silence, and the way dogs can bring out the best is us, helping us understand life, and each other, a little better.