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Following is a discussion question from the author for the December 2014 book of the month, "The Art of Racing in the Rain" by Garth Stein.

In the book's darkest moments, one of Zoe's stuffed animals—the zebra—comes to life and threatens Enzo. What does the zebra symbolize?

One of things I love about this book is how much the author leaves open to interpretation. I think the Zebra represents the fact that the darkness is inside everyone. It's not some external magical evil, even though imagining such things makes us feel better. It's in us. And that just goes back to the theme of the book, in taking self-responsibility and using self-control to win the race rather than just blaming it on the weather or counting on lucky weather. What do you think?

The zebra was funny later on and the story needed that levity to pull you back a bit from the darkness. We all have those less than stellar moments in life, even Enzo is no exception.

haha. At first I just thought the zebra was a hallucination due to dehydration and hunger... that it brought Enzo into a depleted animalistic action-reaction instinctive place. Yes.. a darker place. He just got to a point where he had to take things out on something outside of himself. Everyone ends up doing that, but not necessarily in a physical way. Whether or not Enzo really did see the zebra come to life (as a hallucination) or it was a metaphor of sorts... the end result is the same.

I think if you leave a dog alone for 3 days you should expect a zebra incident when you return. For me, the zebra represented the fear and uncertainty of the situation and Enzo needing a release.

sahmoun2778 wrote:I think if you leave a dog alone for 3 days you should expect a zebra incident when you return. For me, the zebra represented the fear and uncertainty of the situation and Enzo needing a release.

I know! Poor thing. I was surprised at how fast Denny flipped from feeling sorry for him to being mad at him. A stuffed animal is replaceable... a dog is not. The whole situation gave me anxiety. I felt bad for everyone, but I also found it hard to believe that someone could be so sick to forget a dog for DAYS... but was well enough to show up the second Denny got home? It had to have crossed her mind and she could have sent someone over to get Enzo.

I agree and I felt sorry for Enzo as well.

It reminds me of an amusing episode from my childhood. My dog destroyed my bating suit and my mom's coat as a revenge for leaving him home alone for a few hours. We didn't find it funny then.

I could never forget a dog nor a kid and can't understand those who do.

If I had to guess.... this is the musing of a person trying to rationalize how he came home and found a zebra torn to bits... and yet the dog was locked away? Almost like an entire book was written to show how preposterous it is that she said she 'forgot' when so much evidence was against her. (Not saying it was I have no idea... I just like to wonder where cool ideas come from)

It would be hilarious to find out the idea came to fruition based on a fight then the silly discussions of what could have possibly (truly) happened. Who wouldn't want to know the dog's perspective when at a stand still like that?

I guess I am imagining the situation from Denny's perspective. He came home. He found Enzo locked away. Eve tells him it was an accident and she just forgot him there. But then how did he get out to destroy the zebra?

It would be practical to think that first Enzo destroyed the zebra. Eve got mad and put him away. Then she left forgetting about the mess made... but not forgetting Enzo. That seems like a much more believable story than... Eve saying she forgot. And then some kind of hallucination out of body experience that got the zebra annihilated. In real life... Eve left that dog there on purpose....then she was caught because she forgot about the mess.

Sometimes I wonder about my train of thought... it likes to take leaps. haha.

Skillian wrote: I guess I am imagining the situation from Denny's perspective. He came home. He found Enzo locked away. Eve tells him it was an accident and she just forgot him there. But then how did he get out to destroy the zebra?

He wasn't locked away in a specific room, but the entire apartment, so it'd be completely possible to wander into her room and see the stuffed animals. Enzo did say that he "did his business" on the back rug.

Yeah I know my thoughts don't make sense. I remember him rationing out the water in the toilet bowl and all. So I know it was in the whole house.

It was just for a second that I thought he was just in one room though.. him sniffing at the bottom of the pantry door. Made me think he was locked in it. I do have a tendency to let my imagination run wild when enjoying a story or thinking back to it the next day. But yeah.. thinking back... my musings seem more unjustified. haha. But yeah so in revisiting that thought where I wondered if he was locked in the pantry... I ended up going off on this tangent. haha

I was mostly just playing with thoughts as to a situation to where the author came up with the idea for the book. I should have said that better. Like I said.. my train of thought can take leaps. haha. It's like my mind likes to ramble off to a new version... or fanfiction.... after reading a book. Sorry for the confusion! I didn't mean to imply it was what actually happened in the book... it was just something I was toying with in my own mind.

No, it's alright. I wasn't correcting you, just making sure that you weren't under the wrong impression from the book.

Thanks! I was just like wait... do people think I misread it? That's not what I meant! haha. But yeah I totally understand making sure people are reading the same things. No worries. haha.

I think the Zebra episode was done as a way to make the narrator 'human' (as funny as that sounds). At no other point in the book that I recall does Enzo seemed flawed, or admit to making serious mistakes.

It would be difficult to write a character that does not have flaws; thus the importance of the zebra to the story.

librarydancer wrote:I think the Zebra episode was done as a way to make the narrator 'human' (as funny as that sounds). At no other point in the book that I recall does Enzo seemed flawed, or admit to making serious mistakes.

It would be difficult to write a character that does not have flaws; thus the importance of the zebra to the story.

I have to agree with you, and it would be very normal for a dog to tear up a stuffed animal. I think the zebra shows us the "normal" side of Enzo. Enzo says that he feels human, but then he does some very normal dog things.

I do like the idea that this incident was something to help normalize the character and it makes sense that it would, but let's go deeper for a second.

I think it was his terror and confusion over what was happening and his inability to protect. He didn't understand what was happening, and the loss of Zoe to protect from things he doesn't understand, plus water and dehydration must have been overwhelming. I think his worries of something bad happening to Zoe manifested in the zebra defacing the last thing he had a chance at protecting; Zoe's things.

In this theory the zebra represents an unknown bad thing, or since it's familiar it could represent unstable but familiar Eve and the possibility that her behavior could make something bad happen to Zoe. Either way the zebra is being cruel to the little girl's stuffed animals, who could represent Zoe and how helpless she is. Enzo attacks the zebra to protect the toys just as he wants to attack the danger Zoe might be in and protect her from it. The dehydration and hunger made his worry and lack of knowledge about her whereabouts transform into the hallucination that he saw.

In dark times, we may all be driven to do dark things. When the light comes, we may not be ready to face the consequences.