Sight Hound — Pam Houston

There's Rae, and her dog Dante, the wolfhound known as the Enlightened One, who teaches "his human" that love is stronger than fear. As Rae grapples with Dante's advancing bone cancer and her own love troubles, many other characters step forward with their stories: two veterinarians; Rae's flinty house-sitter; her therapist; friends and lovers; and an anxiety-ridden actor, Howard, who turns out to be as stalwart as Dante himself. With the wit and dead-on candor we've come to expect from Pam Houston, Sight Hound unfolds a story that illuminates the intangible covenant between loved ones.