Gunner's Island

Gunner’s Island is a post-war novel that will engage dog lovers, military veterans, history enthusiasts, and undoubtedly anyone who is all three. Set in the small town on a tiny Canadian maritime island, the story unfolds with the return of World War II pilot Linus, following a plane crash that left him irrevocably altered. Linus is grappling with PTSD and acclimation back into civilian life, when he is mysteriously befriended by Gunner, a full grown and affable Newfoundland dog.

With a wide array of detailed characters and scenes that jump between flashbacks and present life, Gunner’s Island is both a drama and comedy. It is earnest yet jocular, weighty yet wholesome, and meant to set sail the reader into the story as effortlessly as its northern ocean waves.

Ralph Holzhauer is a retired high-school math teacher and life-long dog-lover, residing in a small town along Lake Champlain in upstate New York. When not writing, he enjoys training his Newfoundland dog for multiple canine rescue certifications and dog shows, travelling with his wife, and spending time with his four children and many grandchildren. Gunner’s Island is his first novel.