The Long Way Home

A man, a dog, and the long road out of grief.

The Long Way Home is a spare, luminous poetry-and-stories hybrid that follows Tyler and his French bulldog, Dobby, through storms, backroads, and the cold mercy of the woods. Part I moves from a night that will not end to the white seam of the highway, a harsh-lit diner, a climb, a summit-and the comic grace of the Dobby Tales. Part II keeps vigil in the wilderness: rain that demands patience, hunger met with salvage, and a stubborn hope that refuses to go out.

Written in clean, exact lines and brief narratives, this debut returns to the oldest promises-companionship, endurance, and the way a dog steadies a wandering soul. For readers of Mary Oliver and Wendell Berry, it's a field guide to grief, nature, and resilience: one mile, one fire, one small miracle at a time.