63 pages 2 hours read

Garth Stein

The Art of Racing in the Rain

Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2008

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Chapters 11-13

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapter 11 Summary

Left alone, Enzo fears for himself. He has three days of drinking toilet water and no food ahead of him. In this stressful environment, Enzo begins to hallucinate. He sees one of Zoe’s stuffed animals—a zebra—move of its own accord and maliciously thrust itself at the other toys, then tear itself apart from the inside.

Denny comes home, clueless of Eve’s condition. He’s initially furious that Eve left Enzo in this condition. Eve fires back at Denny for his constant absence.

They discover that all of Zoe’s stuffed animals have been torn to shreds. Enzo assumes this was the work of the zebra—that a demon possessed it. Rather than admit any sense of ownership, he feels only guilt that he couldn’t protect the other animals.

Denny tells of his victory at the race, but it’s a bittersweet one. He received an offer to join a team for an additional six months of absence. 

Denny and Enzo make amends to each other after the zebra incident cools down. Denny offers some recognition and sympathy that Enzo is really a human in dog form.