The Friend Winner of the National Book Award for Fiction

A moving story of love, friendship, grief, healing, and the magical bond between a woman and her dog. WINNER OF THE 2018 NATIONAL BOOK AWARD and a NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER 'A true delight: I genuinely fear I won't read a better novel this year' FINANCIAL TIMES 'Loved this. A funny, moving examination of love, grief, and the uniqueness of dogs' GRAHAM NORTON 'Delicious' SUNDAY TIMES 100 BEST SUMMER READS When a woman unexpectedly loses her lifelong best friend and mentor, she finds herself burdened with the unwanted dog he has left behind. Her own battle against grief is intensified by the mute suffering of the dog, a huge Great Dane, and by the threat of eviction: dogs are prohibited in her apartment building. Isolated from the rest of the world, increasingly obsessed with the dog's care, determined to read its mind and fathom its heart, she comes dangerously close to unravelling. But while troubles abound, rich and surprising rewards lie in store for both of them. 'Very, very clever. Mature. Entertaining. Eminently readable and re-readable. Absolutely delightful' IRISH TIMES 'I loved it . . . It's one of my favourite books and it moved me' WHOOPI GOLDBERG A New York Times Notable Book of 2018 * A Financial Times 2018 Best Book: Critics Pick * A Buzzfeed Best Book of 2018 * A Bustle Best Fiction Book of 2018 * An NPR Best Book of 2018