In Five-Dog Epiphany, Marianne Leone writes about the joy that can be summoned after a great loss, “…when you look into the eyes of another damaged creature and know that your happiness is a mirror and an echo and a prayer, and that the little soul reflecting all that energy is happy too, at last.” This memoir is a moving and sometimes surprisingly funny exploration of grief and the mutual healing that can occur between rescue dogs and people who have experienced a soul-crushing loss. Leone and her husband, actor Chris Cooper, lost their only child suddenly in 2005. Jesse was seventeen, a straight-A student, and a brilliant poet, who was also quadriplegic and nonverbal except with the assistance of a computer.

When six-year-old Jesse miraculously blurted “dog” to Santa, Goody appeared on his bed on Christmas morning. Goody was followed by Lucky, Frenchy, Titi, and Sugar, all rescues adopted after Jesse’s passing. After Jesse’s death, Leone grew a tumor the size of her premature son at birth, her husband disappeared into dark acting roles (Breach, Married Life), and Leone fainted during the filming of a scene in The Sopranos where she is standing in front of her television son’s coffin.

This is the story of a bereaved couple and a pack of rescue dogs finding their way to a new life, everyone licking their wounds, both corporal and spiritual, and the rediscovery of joy.

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Praise

“Marianne  Leone’s exploration of grief after the loss of her son offers powerful  truths that have no offensive sugarcoating and are hard won by she and  her husband, Chris Cooper. Dogs populate this story, and I loved getting  to know them all, but the book is really about Leone and about her  heart and her life and her memory and her grief and her love. I would  read her writing about anything, due to her brilliance and sense of humor on any topic.”  —Rob Delaney, author of A Heart That Works

“5 Dog Epiphany is  a marvel—a poignant and revelatory memoir about the profound  relationship between humans and their canine companions. Marianne Leone  writes about grief and dogs and love and healing in a voice that’s raw  and lyrical, and utterly her own.” —Tom Perrotta, author of Election and Tracy Flick Can’t Win

“I  tore through this book, couldn’t put it down. It was deeply, profoundly  moving. And my rescue pitbull kept looking at me, trying to identify  the sound coming out of me, then jumping up to lick off my tears. Very  fitting. I am so grateful to Marianne Leone for sharing her story with  the world.” —Edie Falco, Actress

“Marianne  Leone has written a gorgeous and often hilarious memoir that can break  your heart and lift you up in one swift move. Her rich, delicious prose  will move even those of us who’ve spent most of our lives basking in the  warmth of dog love.”—Julie Klam, author of You Had Me At Woof

“While  reading this heartrending, often funny, and ultimately life-affirming  memoir, I found myself thinking of the nonfiction masters Joan Didion  and Patti Smith, for these are Marianne Leone’s peers.” —Andre Dubus III, author of House of Sand and Fog and Ghost Dogs