Zali's Dog — Adam Wilson

A new story from the author of Sensation Machines.Philip and his girlfriend Beth were seniors in high school when they chose adoption for their son. Now, years later, Beth has moved to Palo Alto - and on with her life - but Philip still lives in town. He works a job he hates so he can be near Olaf, who knows him as “uncle”.On the morning of Olaf's 14th birthday party, Philip hears his neighbor Zali's dog, Sinai, barking on the other side of the fence. Philip scales the fence and finds the dog tied to a tree with a belt, hungry and scared. Not knowing what else to do - and not wanting to miss his son's party - Philip stages Sinai's escape and drops him off at a local shelter.At the party, a gift that Philip gives Olaf exacerbates tensions between him and the boy's parents, leaving Philip feeling unmoored. And when Zali abruptly returns from his mysterious absence to find Sinai missing, Philip must try to retrieve the dog before it's too late. From Adam Wilson, author of the acclaimed novel Sensation Machines, Zali's Dog is a darkly funny and oddly affecting story about the lengths we'll go to protect our hearts.