Thanks to Allen and Unwin here is your chance to win one of 5 x copies of The Wonder of Lost Causes by Nick Trout.

A single mum learns that her son can talk to a very special dog - and the lessons the dog teaches will transform them all.

Dr Kate Blunt will do anything for her son, Jasper. Well, almost anything. Kate's always told him he's not allowed to get a dog. She's a single mum taking care of a kid who has to fight for every breath he takes and Jasper's daily medical routine is complicated enough without adding a mutt to the mix. The terrible irony for Kate is that, as the overworked veterinarian running an animal shelter, her life is full of dogs in constant need of rescuing.

Kate has to live with the fact that every abandoned dog is on a two-week deadline to find a human - so when a scarred, mistreated wreck turns up, she knows he doesn't stand a chance. Named Whistler, he's too old, too ugly. A lost cause. But the dog forms an instantaneous, almost magical connection with Jasper. Whistler never makes a sound, let alone a bark, yet he speaks to Jasper in a myriad of mysterious ways, forging an indelible bond with the boy.

But time is running out. As Kate and Jasper fight to give Whistler another chance, one thing becomes clear: the dog has chosen them for a reason. And what Whistler inspires in them may be his most important lesson of all.

Transformative, moving and life-affirming, The Wonder of Lost Causes will break your heart and make it sing.

Dr. Nick Trout is a British staff surgeon at the prestigious Angell Animal Medical Center in Boston. He's also the author of five books: three memoirs (including the NYT Bestseller Tell Me Where It Hurts - published in the UK by LittleBrown) and two novels (published Hyperion in the US and Allen & Unwin in ANZ).

The Wonder of Lost Causes
Allen and Unwin
Author: Nick Trout
ISBN: 9781760527884
RRP: $29.99