Literary Fiction · MelancholicA writer in Manhattan takes in her late friend's Great Dane, though her building bans dogs
The Friend
by Sigrid Nunez
After her friend dies, a writer takes in his Great Dane, though her building does not allow dogs
A writer in present-day Manhattan speaks directly to a close friend who has died by suicide. His wife, the third he married, cannot keep his Great Dane, Apollo, so the narrator takes the dog in. Her building does not allow dogs, and the super, Hector, tells her she has three months before she risks eviction. She looks into registering Apollo as an emotional support animal, while the book moves between her grief, her memories of her friend, and reflections on writing.
More about this book
Who
An unnamed woman writer who narrates, her late friend, and Apollo, the Great Dane he left behind.
World
Present-day Manhattan, and an apartment building with a no-dogs rule.
What makes it different
It mixes fiction with essay and is addressed to the narrator's friend in the second person. Nunez has said Elizabeth Hardwick's Sleepless Nights was an inspiration.
Feel
Quiet and reflective. It won the 2018 National Book Award for Fiction and was made into a film in 2024 with Naomi Watts.
Page count and cover shown for: Selected edition
Further reading
- The FriendWikipedia