Book Review: Dogsbody by Diana Wynne Jones
May. 1st, 2015 12:39 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
juushikaTitle: Dogsbody
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Published: New York: Firebird, 2012 (1975)
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 272
Total Page Count: 158,747
Text Number: 463
Read Because: mentioned in this discussion of the companion animal trope, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: Convicted of a murder he did not commit, the star Sirius is sentenced to live in the body of a dog and find the murder weapon, lost on Earth. Dogsbody leaves me ambivalent. I'm incredibly picky about fictional representations of animals and animal/human relations; these were dated and outright abusive (and so discomforting to read), and, worse, unconvincing. The caricatured animals undercut the entire premise--and few things annoy me more than animal narratives gone wrong. Yet Jones is an accomplished writer, and Dogsbody does so many interesting things: the smorgasbord of inspirations, beginning with sentient stars culminating in a transcendent Wild Hunt; the complex emotional landscape and flawless, bittersweet conclusion--it's swift, engaging, and creative; sometimes messy, sometimes successful. I treasure what I liked about this, but find that the flaws outweigh. Readers who are more forgiving about animal representations may have better luck.
Author: Diana Wynne Jones
Published: New York: Firebird, 2012 (1975)
Rating: 3 of 5
Page Count: 272
Total Page Count: 158,747
Text Number: 463
Read Because: mentioned in this discussion of the companion animal trope, ebook borrowed from the Multnomah County Library
Review: Convicted of a murder he did not commit, the star Sirius is sentenced to live in the body of a dog and find the murder weapon, lost on Earth. Dogsbody leaves me ambivalent. I'm incredibly picky about fictional representations of animals and animal/human relations; these were dated and outright abusive (and so discomforting to read), and, worse, unconvincing. The caricatured animals undercut the entire premise--and few things annoy me more than animal narratives gone wrong. Yet Jones is an accomplished writer, and Dogsbody does so many interesting things: the smorgasbord of inspirations, beginning with sentient stars culminating in a transcendent Wild Hunt; the complex emotional landscape and flawless, bittersweet conclusion--it's swift, engaging, and creative; sometimes messy, sometimes successful. I treasure what I liked about this, but find that the flaws outweigh. Readers who are more forgiving about animal representations may have better luck.
