The Dog of the North, Elizabeth McKenzie
‘For a while I went berserk, and wished it would never end.’
A wholly endearing and delightful tale, award-winning author Elizabeth McKenzie’s latest novel is a total whirlwind of a novel that will sweep you up and carry you away on a quest that will take you from the idiosyncrasies of Californian life to the outback of Australia and back again. Along the way, a crew of flawed yet somewhat charming characters are introduced into readers’ lives, as they accompany our protagonist, Penny – often to disastrous effect.
Distinguished by McKenzie’s trademark wit and deadpan humour, the narrative is driven by Penny’s attempt to tie up the loose ends of her family’s affairs and to somewhat remedy their relative dysfunction. One of the many delights of this novel is the joy of rooting wholeheartedly for Penny – a socially awkward misfit with trauma in her past – as she navigates through a series of challenges, facing curveballs at every corner.
A wonderfully sincere novel with hope at its core, I thoroughly enjoyed being so engrossed in a world so far removed from my own.
