Book Review - The Smiling Dog Café: Healing Fiction, Volume 1 by Neil S. Plakcy

The Smiling Dog Cafe: Healing Fiction by Neil S. Plakcy
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Heartbreaking and heartwarming, healing and hopeful stories are all connected by a magical coffee shop and its canine caretakers.

The Smiling Dog Café: Healing Fiction, Volume 1 by Neil S. Plakcy, is a two-novella collection of what is known as “healing fiction,” a style of story of Japanese origin. As the stories unfold, not only do the characters undergo positive restorative change, but readers may also experience hope and satisfaction as well.

In the first story, readers are introduced to Betty Martinez, the owner of The Smiling Dog Café, a magical coffee shop well off the beaten paths in Brooklyn, and as such, a recurring character for each of the stories. I loved the concept that while some of her customers just stumbled across the café, many are led there by following one of the unusual dogs memorialized by Betty’s deceased wife in paintings adorning the walls. Each of the customers brought there by the supernatural canines is hurting, damaged, or lost in some way, and Betty, a retired grief counselor, skillfully serves up hope and wisdom along with her special coffee.

In “Code of Silence,” Jeff Hodges, the product of an abusive childhood home life because of his frustrated, alcoholic father, learned early on from his downtrodden mother that silence and invisibility are the safest routes through life. Jeff takes that lesson to heart, and despite his almost genius-level understanding of computing, computer science, and coding, he hides his abilities, choosing to be safe and secure over even a hint of risk and a fulfilling life. When his skills inadvertently put himself and his coworkers out of a job, he’s led through the side streets and alleys of Brooklyn to The Smiling Dog Café by a mysterious golden retriever.

In “A Mother’s Heart,” Sophia Greenwood’s young daughter, Emma, ends up in the local hospital’s pediatric cardiac unit, suffering from the same congenital heart problem that she has and that killed her mother. Sophia is overcome with guilt, fear, and the belief that she isn’t up to the task of mothering her daughter under the same circumstances she endured as a child. Following a three-legged Irish Setter to The Smiling Dog Café, she discovers Betty and the help she needs to recognize her past has prepared her to be a strong, capable woman and mother.

Both stories are told in mesmerizing dual timelines, detailing how the characters came to this point in their present lives. Jeff’s regrets and fears have hobbled him from living an authentic life, much like Sophia’s childhood medical restrictions could have denied her had it not been for the series of vastly different women who had a hand in her upbringing and care. The author’s writing style puts the reader in the characters’ lives and makes the intervention by the mysterious dogs seem natural while maintaining its magic. Two stories were absolutely not enough!

I recommend THE SMILING DOG CAFÉ to readers of healing fiction and fantasy, especially those who enjoyed the BEFORE THE COFFEE GETS COLD series or similar works.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from Reedsy Discovery.

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