Passing by a veterinary clinic where fifteen dogs have been left overnight, for various reasons, they settle on this batch of trial-subjects, endowing them - presto - with human intelligence. I'll wager a year's servitude, said Apollo, that animals - any animal you choose - would be even more unhappy than humans are, if they had human intelligence.Īpollo believes human intelligence is, at best: 'an occasionally useful plague', but Hermes isn't convinced, and takes the bet - with odds that would seem to strongly favor him: 'if, at the end of its life, even one of the creatures is happy, I win' (though they haven't settled how many animals, or what kind, are to be converted at that point yet). They discuss the nature of humanity, and wonder what it would be like if animals had human intelligence - and come up with a bet: We acknowledge (and remind and warn you) that they may, in fact, be entirely unrepresentative of the actual reviews by any other measure.įifteen Dogs begins with the gods Apollo and Hermes having beers in a Toronto pub. Similarly the illustrative quotes chosen here are merely those the complete review subjectively believes represent the tenor and judgment of the review as a whole. Please note that these ratings solely represent the complete review 's biased interpretation and subjective opinion of the actual reviews and do not claim to accurately reflect or represent the views of the reviewers. 'In posing the question of whether animals would die happier with the capacity of human consciousness, Alexis provides a bleak yet revitalizing tale of human mortality and the gift, or curse, of superior intelligence.' - Ryann Gordon, World Literature Today.In sum, this is the dog’s bollocks.' - Peter Carty, The Independent (.) (A)s thought-provoking as it is enjoyable.

He is also well versed in Greek myth and legend, yet where Fifteen Dogs really succeeds is on an allegorical level. 'Alexis excels at sparking drama from collisions between the canine and the human.(.) I’m far from being a dog person, but as a book person I loved this smart, exuberant fantasy from start to finish.' - Jonathan Gibbs, The Guardian 'It’s a grand thing, then, that this spry novel by Canadian André Alexis spends its 160 pages repeatedly defying expectations.'(I)t is precisely because of this dogness and the contrast it engenders that these dogs’ struggle with intelligence speaks to us so acutely of what it means to be human.' - José Teodoro, The Globe and Mail.General information | review summaries | our review | links | about the author Trying to meet all your book preview and review needs.

Fifteen dogs by andré alexis