Paul Yoon’s new novel, “Etna,” follows a haunted, battle-scarred war veteran who wants desperately to go home. He also happens to be a dog — a mixed-breed shepherd trained to sniff out bombs for an unnamed military in the throes of an unnamed conflict — and he has no idea where he is anymore, or if his old farm is even still standing after so much violence. Undeterred, he ventures into the great unknown, to somehow find his way back. The result is a powerful story about survival, the brutal cost of war and what it means to step forward after calamity. On this episode of the Book Review Book Club, the host MJ Franklin discusses the novel with his colleagues Elisabeth Egan and Scott Heller. You can follow along, and add your own comments to the discussion here. Other books (and poems, and a movie) mentioned in this episode: The “Odyssey”The work of E.E. CummingsThe film “A Dog’s Purpose,” directed by Lasse Hallström (adapted from W. Bruce Cameron’s novel, also named “A Dog’s Purpose”)“The Vulnerables,” by Sigrid Nunez“The Eyes and the Impossible,” by Dave Eggers“Angel Down,” by Daniel Kraus“Marley & Me,” by John Grogan“Flush,” by Virginia Woolf“Doggerel,” by Reginald Dwayne Betts“Dog Show,” by Billy Collins“Deaf Republic,” by Ilya Kaminsky“An Immense World,” by Ed Yong“Station Eleven,” by Emily St. John Mandel“The Road,” by Cormac McCarthyListen to and Follow ‘The Book Review’ Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Amazon Music | YouTube | iHeartRadio Unlock full access to New York Times podcasts and explore everything from politics to pop culture. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. We Want to Hear From You We would love to hear your thoughts about this episode, and about the Book Review’s podcast in general. You can send them to thebookreview@nytimes.com. Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Amazon Music. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
