Sight Hound [Bargain Price] [Hardcover]

Pam Houston (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 30, 2005

The long-awaited novel—a very special love story—from the best-selling author of Cowboys Are My Weakness.

This is the story of a woman, Rae, and her dog, Dante, a wolfhound who teaches "his human" that love is stronger than fear (the dog has always known this). Dante is the catalyst for change in other characters as well, and they step forward with their narratives: Rae's house-tender; her therapist; two veterinarians; and an anxiety-ridden actor, Howard, who turns out to be as stalwart as Dante himself. As the "seer" who hunts by sight rather than smell, Dante has some things to add, as does Rose, another dog who lives at Rae's heels, and Stanley the cat. Among and above these myriad voices, Rae voices her own challenges. 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. Here, dogs and humans are simply equal creatures, looking to connect and holding on for dear life when they do.

--This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

At the heart of Pam Houston's tender novel Sight Hound is a surprisingly thoughtful three-legged Irish wolfhound named Dante. Convinced that it is his responsibility to teach the humans around him about love, he concentrates his efforts on his owner Rae. While the thought of a canine in the lead role may give many pause, in this case it shouldn't. Houston manages to pull this aspect of the story off with skill and is able to create a multi-dimensional character out of a cancer-riddled old dog. She's not quite as successful with the humans in her story, however, and the array of voices the story is told in quickly becomes confusing.

A decent novel on its own, Sight Hound may leave long-time Houston fans feeling a little cheated. Personal essays and short stories like those in Cowboy Are My Weakness and A Little More About Me stir the heart and endear readers to Houston's signature blend of over-the-top confidence and girlish insecurity. Fans will gobble this effort up while anxiously waiting for more from Houston, but readers new to her work might do better to start on her earlier titles. --Victoria Griffith --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Postfeminist toughness and post-hippie sentiment are the alternating currents of this wry, tender novel by Houston (Cowboys Are My Weakness; Waltzing the Cat; etc.) about a Colorado playwright and her beloved Irish wolfhound. Rae hasn't had much luck with men, but her love for her dog Dante is pure and uncomplicated. When he is diagnosed with cancer, she puts all of her energies into prolonging his life, volunteering him for experimental surgery. The ups and downs of the three years he spends in remission are narrated from the perspective of the motley friends who float in Rae's out-sized orbit. Chief among these is Howard, the adorably histrionic actor whose love is Rae's main consolation for the looming loss of Dante; there's also Darlene, Rae's tough-as-nails housekeeper, who keeps things running at the ranch while Rae's at her Denver apartment or traveling to exotic places. Then there's restless, jaded Jonathan, Rae's fellow playwright and best friend; Jodi, the young bride of a surrealist painter, who moves to Colorado and finds a soul mate in Rae; Dr. Evans, the driven vet who labors to save Dante; and Brooklyn Underhill, Dr. Evans's idealistic young ex-soldier assistant. And of course, Dante has his own say, as does Rae's rambunctious second dog, Rose, and Darlene's cat, Stanley. Houston isn't afraid to venture into boggy terrain—readers who squirm at the notion that dogs have human "moms" and "souls as deep and authentic as anything in creation" will resist being carried along at first—but the novel's humor and irony are bracing, and different voices provide welcome contrasts in tone. Houston's gift for capturing the dynamic of unorthodox webs of relationships is on pleasing display in this gruffly warmhearted novel.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an alternate Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 342 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton & Company (January 30, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0393058174
• ASIN: B000OZ28KG
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,574,187 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A poignant love story, February 1, 2005

By 

Luan Gaines "luansos" (Dana Point, CA USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sight Hound: A Novel (Hardcover)

Animals bring out the best in most people, fostering a capacity for affection and tenderness that might otherwise remain inaccessible. Such is the case with Dante, an Irish wolfhound. When Dante loses a leg to cancer, he exhibits an almost Ghandi-like tolerance for pain, inordinately sensitive to the emotional needs of his owner, Rae. Dante's calm acceptance of his fate is critical, for he has much work to do with his human. While Rae covertly watches her pet, eyes darkened by the sadness of his imminent suffering, Dante gets along splendidly on his three remaining legs.

Rae has known love before, each time believing this man is the one, but all leave eventually. In every instance, Dante is there to soothe his human, to comfort her and fill the empty spaces, his soulful eyes speaking volumes. Rae has enjoyed many friendships over the years, a decent income from work she loves and a ranch in one of the most beautiful spots in Denver, Colorado, God's country, where she can withdraw from the world when necessary to frolic with her animals and enjoy life on the land. Rae has pursued a career as a playwright because she is fascinated by the way people fail to listen to one another, including herself, the way most follow their own agendas: "History is a starfish that grows an extra arm no matter how many times the original limb is severed."

As the story evolves, each new chapter is written in the first-person voice of those who know Rae, lovers, confidants and friends who offer differing perspectives into the mind of an ambitious, sensitive and talented woman, her history complicated by fears and personal failings, the comfort of Eastern religions and an innate willingness to accept life`s challenges with her best friend, the noble Dante, at her side.

It is Dante's task to help Rae bridge a paralyzing fear of his impending death, to accept love in all its forms and live each day in gratitude for the bounty she enjoys. Quite a task. But if any dog is up to it, Dante can pull off this assignment. Through the passage of time and natural disasters, like the wildfires that raged through Colorado threatening to decimate the landscape, the devastation of 9/11 and life's inevitable ups and downs, Rae and her eclectic assortment of friends and pets move from one year to the next, all watching Dante, waiting for the inevitable. Yet, on the ranch, everything speaks to nature's cycles, birth, death, rebirth. It is a land of many lessons and perhaps why Rae is so at home in this country.

This is a love story, after all. The love of a woman for her dog, Dante, and that dog for his owner, a love that sustains them through a series of painful operations, that transcends time and place to teach Rae and the other humans a vital lesson: love conquers fear. People lover, dog lover, by description, Rae would have to be a Virgo, an earth mother, Dante her intransigent spirit guide. Luan Gaines/2005.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Good Fun with Dogs But--, April 13, 2005

By 

Constance M. Gotsch "Novelist On Board" - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sight Hound: A Novel (Hardcover)

SIGHT HOUND by Pam Houston is hard to describe. Parts are funny, and if you own a dog, they're gut-busting, because you've had similar experiences with your pets. Parts of the story are emotionally wrenching, as when the heroine, Rae struggles to find the right mate. Who hasn't done that? Parts of it are beautiful, such as the descriptions of the Colorado ranch where Rae lives. Parts of it are fantastic, as when Houston paints the world through the eyes of family pets, who believe they are on earth to help RAE achieve her chosen goal, to find a nice human being to sped time with. Parts, unfortunaely, are unconvincing. There are a couple of characters who don't feel real.

SIGHT HOUND is a tough read. Houston writes from several peoples' points of view, and then from a couple of dogs' perspectives. Thus the reader gets the story by seeing a particular event from many angles, as if putting together a picture puzzle. For someone with the patience to keep reading, the reward will be a complete picture of plot and character development. But it takes several chapters before the story starts to come together.

But in a sense, that's what makes SIGHT HOUND work.
Houston is carefully portraying the madcap life we all seem to be living in the early 21st Century, spiritually, politically, romanticly, socially, and professionally. The story's main character, Rae, is trying to cope with a career, a succession of male friends and their issues, and the illness of a special pet. Houston shows us Rae's process in the fragmented bits and pieces our lives become. Because a reader can recognize something of him or herself in each character's point of view at a particular moment, it's fairly easy to develop the discipline to keep reading. Then suddenly, the book will not be laid aside until the story comes to its conclusion. This is very real-life, and in its own way satisfying.

I would recommend SIGHT HOUND for the serious reader, who likes unusual plot lines and depictions of the odd moments in life. In the end, that's what I liked about the book.

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A terrific novel debut, January 20, 2005

By 

ReaderKate - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sight Hound: A Novel (Hardcover)

One of the best things about Pam Houston's writing is how she manages to unearth the preciousness in the imperfect. A three-legged dog, an "unstable" actor, a seemingly cold veterinary surgeon - the heroes of Sight Hound are not the most likely candidates, but each is rendered wholly and convincingly real. The woman who brings them together, Rae, has her own flaws as well, the biggest of which is perhaps a willingness to place too much trust in the wrong people, although she balances that with an equally strong knack for finding the right ones. The bond between Rae and Dante, the wolfhound and title character, is as deep and true as any human love, perhaps more. In the end, what makes this novel satisfying is the same thing that makes all of Houston's work so powerful. She makes us realize that ultimately it is our flaws, our willingness to be human, to risk, to make mistakes, to screw up, to be vulnerable and laid bare that open the door to the most meaningful moments in our lives.