Taking a short break

I will be taking the next seven weeks off from reading and reviewing books, as I focus on a busy time at work.  I expect to be back the first week of June.

Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis

This is another book club title and also this year's winner of CBC's Canada Reads competition.  In the interest of full disclosure, I must confess that I'm not terribly keen on dogs.  I know, I know. In the minds of many that makes me a monster without a soul. But let me assure you, I do have a soul: an aloof, fastidious, and somewhat languid feline soul. Fifteen Dogs is told from the perspective of self-aware and talking dogs, so forgive me if I arch my back and hiss just a tiny bit.

One day, the gods Apollo and Hermes are feeling bored and make a wager over whether animals would be "even more unhappy than humans are, if they had human intelligence." So they enter a vet clinic late at night and grant 15 dogs human intelligence.  The novel then explores how the dogs respond to this gift/ curse.

Some are frightened by these alien powers and wish to continuing living like authentic dogs, while others are delighted and want to embrace language and the new understanding that it brings.  This naturally leads to conflict, for as one traditionalist puts it: "a pack needed unity, and unity meant that all understood the world in the same way or, if not the world, the rules, at least."

Alexis endows his canine protagonists with rich personalities that are built on our expectations of particular breeds, but layered with individuality and psychological insight. So we may not be surprised that a Neapolitan Mastiff wants to lead or two young Labrador Retrievers are full of energy and conviction, but the characters are not limited to those expected roles.

The construct provides a broad canvas to explore many philosophical issues, such as the nature of happiness and love; the roles of instinct and reason in our behaviour; the basis of our religious and social structures; and the uses of violence. There is also much humour to be found in perceiving human behaviour from the perspective of the dogs for who knows us better than our long-time companions and presumptive best-friends. Spoiler alert: they may not actually love us as unconditional as we believe.

Sadly, it did not leave me with a newfound appreciation of our canine friends.  Indeed it reinforced some of my worst prejudices against dogs: that they are prone to sudden acts of aggression, willing to hump anything, and inclined to eat each others' feces (seriously, guys, that's just gross).

Rich in philosophy, humour, and fantastic characterizations--who knew beagles could be so sneaky--the story moves forward rapidly, and at times feels like a mash-up of Lord of the Flies and Watership Down.  Recommended for both dog-lovers and the rest of us.

Four smileys out of five: 😀😀😀😀