Dog Person | Book Review

Lisa Harvey
1 minute ago
2 min read

by Camille Pagán

A STORY OF GRIEF, A BOOKSTORE, and SECOND CHANCES

⭐️⭐️⭐️

SUMMARY

Harold is an aging, scruffy rescue dog, a Britney-Setter mix, mourning the loss of his favorite human, Amelia. Before she died, Amelia asked Harold to help her partner Miguel find true love again. Ten seasons later, Miguel is unkempt, withdrawn, and still mourning Amelia’s death deeply. He also struggles financially to keep their beloved bookstore afloat. To make matters worse, the landlord increased the bookstore’s rent, and Miguel’s favorite author, who had finally agreed to a ticketed event there, failed to show up on the night of the event. These events drove the bookstore into further financial trouble, finally prompting Miguel to take action.

REVIEW

I am a big dog person and really appreciate Harold’s perspective in this hopeful story. My heart felt heavy while reading about Miguel’s and Harold’s grief and financial struggles in the first half of the book. Miguel's withdrawal and inability to take action were just too frustrating for me. I seriously considered giving up a couple of times, but I’m glad I stuck with it until the end.

The writing and dialogue for DOG PERSON were good. The character development was fair, but I couldn't quite get a clear picture of Miguel or Harold in my mind. We know Harold was scruffy, but what color was his fur? Was it long or short? How big was he? My favorite part of the book was the relationship between Harold and a young girl in Chicago named Amelia Mae. Amelia Mae adds some warmth and spark to a story that was otherwise pretty dark.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advance copy of this book. All opinions expressed here are my own.

Publisher Delacorte Press

Published April 7, 2026

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