The Way of the Dog

"Sam Savage [creates] some of the most original, unforgettable characters in contemporary fiction. . . . Readers are left with a voice so strong that Savage is able to derive significance from these events by sheer literary force."--Kevin Larimer, "Poets & Writers"

"Savage's skill is in creating complex first-person characters using nothing but their own voice."--Carolyn Kellogg, "Los Angeles Times"

"[Savage] creates one of the most intriguing stories--and one of the most vivid characters--that this reader has encountered this year."--"The Writer"

Sam Savage's most intimate, tender novel yet follows Harold Nivenson, a decrepit, aging man who was once a painter and arts patron. The death of Peter Meinenger, his friend turned romantic and intellectual rival, prompts him to ruminate on his own career as a minor artist and collector and make sense of a lifetime of gnawing doubt.

Over time, his bitterness toward his family, his gentrifying neighborhood, and the decline of intelligent artistic discourse gives way to a kind of peace within himself, as he emerges from the shadow of the past and finds a reason to live, every day, in "the now."

Sam Savage is the best-selling author of "Firmin: Adventures of a Metropolitan Lowlife," "The Cry of the Sloth," and "Glass." A native of South Carolina, Savage holds a PhD in philosophy from Yale University. He resides in Madison, Wisconsin.