AN INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER From the New York Times bestselling author of The Celebrants and The Guncle , a heartwarming story about finding oneself in one of the most romantic cities on Earth. After months of planning a romantic holiday getaway in Venice, Paul is blindsided when his five-year marriage suddenly unravels. Fueled by heartbreak, Paul endeavors to take the trip alone. Soon after arriving in Italy, he notices a small, scruffy, self-assured dog trotting alongside a canal with the confidence he so desperately wants for himself. When their paths cross again, Paul feels compelled to learn how his new four-legged friend thrives on his own. Amid the food, sights, and welcoming people of Venice, Paul’s journey culminates in a magical encounter that leads him to feel real connection—to a dog, to a foreign city and, most importantly, to himself. Capturing Steven Rowley's signature wit, insight, and indelible characters, The Dogs of Venice offers another timeless story of love lost, and independence found—a holiday tonic for the soul. "This heartfelt little book offers a story of renewal and hope for the holidays." — Forbes.com "If you love any sort of dog-centered tale (no pun intended) or want a cozy, heartwarming read, pick this one up . . . along with a box of tissues." — theSkimm "Readers used to Rowley’s humor, heartbreak and wonder will welcome glimpses of that writing here, as he gives readers a svelte, engaging novella, weighing in at 60 pages, that can easily be read while cooking, waiting on a subway or sitting in a park. This book is a delight." — Pittsburgh Post-Gazette "Rowley’s trademark tenderness, vulnerability, honesty, and humor are on full display in this touching, life-affirming novella." — Booklist Steven Rowley is the New York Times bestselling author of Lily and the Octopus, a Washington Post Notable Book; The Editor, an NPR Best Book of the Year; The Guncle, winner of the Thurber Prize for American Humor and Goodreads Choice Awards finalist for Novel of the Year; The Celebrants, a Today Show Read with Jenna book club pick; and The Guncle Abroad . His fiction has been translated into twenty languages. He resides in Palm Springs, California. It was a trip Paul and Darren had planned together, Venice at Christmas, an idea cooked up while dining at Alice, a dark and moody Italian joint in New York's Greenwich Village. Alice is Italian for anchovy, one of Italy's most popular fish, something they'd learned on a previous vacation to Rome. They spent the better part of the year planning and dreaming, saving and studying, until three weeks prior, while they were admiring Bergdorf's avant-garde Christmas windows, of all things, Darren announced their marriage was over."This isn't working," he'd said. Convinced his husband was talking about the window display, Paul covered one eye, then turned his head sideways to see if that helped."I think it's the Pegasus . . . es." Pegasi? "There are too many of them." The winged creatures frolicked and kicked and were covered in mirrors like disco balls. "In Greek mythology, they sprang from the blood of Medusa when Perseus cut off her head, but I have a hard time believing that many horses could stampede out of one woman's neck." But Darren wasn't talking about the windows. By the time the departure date for their trip rolled around, he had already acquired moving boxes from the U-Haul on West 23rd.Stunned, Paul forced himself onto the plane anyway, thinking what Darren needed was time alone; surely after a day or two he would come to his senses and maybe even make it to Italy in time for Christmas."Next to an empty seat. Do you always have such good luck?" asked a male flight attendant with an easy smile just after the plane's doors had closed and everyone had taken their seats. Up until that moment, Paul had his eyes trained on the aisle, thinking Darren might reconsider."Actually, I was supposed to take this trip to Venice with someone. But . . ." Paul couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence. Not that he needed to; heartbreak was written across his face.The flight attendant twisted his mouth to one side but later brought him a free bottle of wine and leaned in to whisper, "My gondolances," causing Paul to stifle a groan. The in-flight magazine had an article about New York at Christmas, and he tore out the page with a photomontage of the city's store-window displays and used it to spit out his gum. The woman across the aisle glared at him, and Paul glared back until she returned her attention to her book.Paul arrived in Italy via Paris, JFK to Charles de Gaulle to Marco Polo, before a water taxi ferried him briskly across the Laguna Veneta, a bay in the Adriatic Sea. Even with the extensive directions the rental company had provided, the loft Darren had booked was almost impossible to find, hidden behind an arched cutout in a crumbling wall that opened to a private cobblestone walk. Paul was so lost in