The Plague Dogs: A Novel
by Richard Adams
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Book Summary Information
Author: Richard AdamsEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2006-11-28
ISBN: 0345494024
Number of pages: 416
Publisher: Ballantine Books
Book Reviews of The Plague Dogs: A Novel
Book Review: A hard read
Summary: 2 Stars
I barely made it to the end of this book, and after finishing didn't feel rewarded for sticking all the way through it. I liked Snitter and Rowf enough to WONDER whether they might make it through alive or not, but never actually CARED. This was due to the style of writing in the book. Be warned that this book is not at all in the style of Watership Down. There is little action and too much characterization (at least of the humans - the dogs are done well) is displayed by the writer out in the open, in long and plodding pages of biographical history and personality description rather than letting the characters act from the get-go. Even so I didn't feel that the human characters acted entirely in a realistic manner, and two (!) of them are transformed by a change of heart from practically evil to practically pure - think puppies and rainbows type changes! (Even one of the dogs, I felt, depending on how you interprete the ending, had a radical change of heart to make things less complicated for the writer.) There are also long and plodding pages of descriptions of, well, hills. Lots and lots of hills. With all of this in between the story of the dogs and the pursuit of them, I lost interest and emotion for Snitter and Rowf.
There are also absolutely ridiculous conversations between the author and some "reader" he imagined in his head. Take this example: "And what the devil (I hear you asking) has all this got to do with Snitter and Rowf...[etc etc...] Nothing, you have concluded? Your Highness shall from this practice but make hard your heart. In fact...[etc etc...]" I wasn't even asking such a thing! This was written after one of the few parts I actually found entirely engrossing (if only for personal reasons), and Adams had to go and ruin the flow with strange insults. It's like Adams looked at his work, found that he was lacking in some areas, and covered it up by chiding the audience if they should see it too. The ending was entirely ruined for me simply because Adams again had a page-long conversation with the "reader" - in poetic form no less!
The ending also reminded me of the end of The Dark Tower series, where Stephen King gave one ending, and then wrote that if the reader didn't like that ending they could read on and they'd have the ending they really wanted. Both endings also had writer insertion and a deus ex machina (the latter of which The Plague Dogs runs on).
It's a very British book. I'm not even sure what that means, since I don't watch or read much British stuff, but there are lots of British words (even besides the accents) and references to literature or popular culture (I'm guessing that's what those were anyway). And good God, the hills. So many hills.
Well this is all just my opinion, and I felt that I should put it up since so many of the negative reviews on here don't seem to actually point out what was disliked (probably why I ordered the book!). There were parts I enjoyed - much of the second half was partly engrossing, the messages were well argued and well taken, and Snitter's madness was wonderful. The rest of the reviews on this page will tell you all about these things. But still I could not like the book overall. If things like what I wrote above drive you nuts as much as they do me, stay away. If you like dog books, I suggest instead James Oliver Curwood's books Kazan and Baree (in that order), though I'll admit I read both long ago but they were very engaging at the time.
Summary of The Plague Dogs: A Novel
"Thousands and thousands of people will love this book!"THE BOSTON GLOBE
A lyrical, engrossing tale, by the author of WATERSHIP DOWN, Richard Adams creates a lyrical and engrossing tale, a remarkable journey into the hearts and minds of two canine heroes, Snitter and Rowf, fugitives from the horrors of an animal research center who escape into the isolation--and terror--of the wilderness.
From the Paperback edition.
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