Dog Person

By: Camille Pagan

ISBN: 9798217092055

Publisher: Ballantine | Delacorte Press

Publication Date: 04/07/2026

Format: Other

My Rating: TBR (ARC)

APR 2026 MUST-READ BOOKS

"Not since A Dog's Purpose have I been so besotted by a novel's canine. Just like a good dog, Harold and this beautiful book will break your heart open and mend it all at once. “ —Colleen Oakley, USA Today bestselling author of Jane & Dan at the End of the World

In this delightfully heartwarming novel, an elderly dog is determined to help his grieving owner find a reason to go on after loss. Now, if only he’d stop getting in his way by being so very . . . human.

Harold may be an aging mutt—but Amelia May, the romance novelist who adopted him, taught him a thing or two about the human heart before she died. And she also left Harold with a final task: to help her partner, Miguel, find love again.

Trouble is, the grief-ridden recluse rarely goes out, not even to the bookstore he and Amelia owned together. Now it’s in danger of going under, and when a renowned author doesn’t show up for his event, it pushes the store’s already precarious finances into the red. In a final attempt to save the bookstore, Miguel and Harold set out to find the no-show and insist he fulfill his obligation. But instead, they’re greeted by Fiona, his sunny yet secretive sister.

Fiona is intent on protecting her brother’s privacy—and to Harold’s horror, she doesn’t like dogs. But her precocious eleven-year-old daughter, who's also named Amelia, immediately befriends Harold . . . who can’t help but wonder if his Amelia was right when she said there are no coincidences in life.

Harold’s quickly running out of time to accomplish his mission, but if he can just convince his infuriatingly stubborn person to let Fiona in, he’s certain Miguel will find something far more important than a missing author: his own happy ending.

Uplifting, smartly observed, and hilariously insightful, Dog Person is as undeniably charming as its beloved narrator, Harold, and offers a much-needed reminder that while not all love is unconditional, it is still always worthwhile.

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Praise

“Not since A Dog’s Purpose have I been so besotted by a novel’s canine. Just like a good dog, Harold and this beautiful book will break your heart open and mend it all at once.”

—Colleen Oakley, USA Today bestselling author of Jane and Dan at the End of the World

“Tender, heartwarming, and true, Dog Person captures the devoted, unconditional love of a dog for their human and a human for their dog, and all the ways that love can both break us apart and put us back together.”

—Allison Winn Scotch, New York Times bestselling author of The Rewind

“Told from a dog’s perspective, in the vein of The Art of Racing in the Rain, Dog Person captures the richest emotions: love, loss, found families, healing, and the warm wit of a precious dog . . . all set at a bookstore! I laughed. I cried. I rooted for these complex characters. Love stories don’t come any bigger than this.”

—Rochelle Weinstein, bestselling author of This Is Not How It Ends

“Heartwarming and life-affirming, Dog Person is an utterly delightful novel of second chances, bookstores, and that inexplicable connection between people and their pets. Narrator Harold is the fluffy, wise, and completely charming protagonist we all need right now. . . . Five huge stars!”

—Kristy Woodson Harvey, New York Times bestselling author of Beach House Rules (and her dog, Salt, too!)

“Filled with tender moments and lighthearted humor conveyed via the perspective of a man’s best friend, Camille Pagán’s story is utterly refreshing and clever. From the first chapter to the last sentence of the epilogue, I was hooked!”

—Suzanne Park, author of One Last Word

About the Author

Camille Pagán writes witty stories about love and life’s what-ifs.

She is the #1 Amazon Charts and Washington Post bestselling author of 11 books, including Good for You, I’m Fine and Neither Are You, and Life and Other Near-Death Experiences. Click here to learn more about her fiction.

She’s also a master certified coach, prolific journalist and speaker, and the founder of Even Better Co. WEBSITE