Title: Fifteen Dogs Author: André Alexis
Published: April 14, 2015
Genre(s): Literary Fiction
Page Count: 171
Rating:
Summary from Goodreads:A bet between the gods Hermes and Apollo leads them to grant human consciousness and language to a group of dogs overnighting at a Toronto veterinary clinic. Suddenly capable of more complex thought, the pack is torn between those who resist the new ways of thinking, preferring the old 'dog' ways, and those who embrace the change.
The gods watch from above as the dogs venture into their newly unfamiliar world, as they become divided among themselves, as each struggles with new thoughts and feelings. Wily Benjy moves from home to home, Prince becomes a poet, and Majnoun forges a relationship with a kind couple that stops even the Fates in their tracks.
André Alexis’ modern fable, Fifteen Dogs, is insightful, thought-provoking, and fascinating. Using the vehicle of a strange wager between the gods Apollo and Hermes, the author is able to explore the human condition (the canine condition?) and human consciousness. It’s a strange book, but it carries its strangeness with elegance and purpose, and even a situation as comical as “what would happen if dogs had human intelligence?” becomes rather more weighty and philosophical than one would originally expect.
Plus, of course: DOGS.
I absolutely enjoyed this book, and though it’s no secret that I, ahem, really enjoy dogs, I was a bit surprised by how much I did connect emotionally with Fifteen Dogs. The final page brought tears to my eyes, and as each dog met his or her eventual death (spoiler alert: all 15 dogs are dead by the end), I was roused to compassion, even for the dogs that, to use the common term, were quite “unlikable”.
In general, I almost feel that what Alexis has accomplished with this book is a bit above my level, but that’s all right, as I nevertheless enjoyed the text. It was interesting to note that, even with human consciousness, the dogs had trouble reconciling this with their innate doggishness. Some chose to embrace their new intelligence, other tried to be purely canine, and others did things in between, each in their own pursuit of “happiness” or survival.
And, of course, since this is a novel in which the gods are involved, there is much meddling and interfering in the dogs’ lives, which anyone who’s read The Iliad would of course have expected. Though Hermes, Apollo, Zeus, and Company weren’t a huge aspect of Fifteen Dogs, I was nevertheless very happy with how human mythology was incorporated into the text, and how canine mythology was also presented, as it is only natural that dogs, equipped with higher intelligence, would seek to understand their origins and roles in life.
Fifteen Dogs is a very brief story, but it has a lot of meat to it. It’s strange how relevant a book about dogs can feel, but André Alexis has certainly accomplished that here. The book offers a lot to think about, which in addition to how innovative and well-written it is, makes this a book to pay attention to.
Also, just…I love dogs. A lot.
