As I try to write about Even The Dogs I find myself either completely lost for words or drowning in them. Yes, it really is that good.
“They break down the door at the end of December and carry the body away”
The story arc is simple. The death of one man. Once he had a family, a wife and a daughter, but he fell into alcoholism and they left. His home became a haven for drug addicts. And then he died. His body is discovered, there is a post-mortem and then there is an inquest. Some questions are answered, but many are not.
It is an unhappy story, and there is no redemption, but it works and you should read it. Because it is utterly real and utterly compelling.
It’s the execution that makes it work. Eyes always moving, always watching. And a chorus of fractured voices, speaking, breaking off, pushing in again …. Slowly a picture emerges.
The man, Robert, living behind the same door with a partner, Yvonne. The couple raising an infant daughter. But then Robert began to drink. more and more. Yvonne took her daughter and left. Robert stayed, and sunk further and further into alcoholism.
Soon drug addicts moved in, offering up alcohol and food to their “landlord”. And so the downward spiral continued. Until he died, and they scattered. Their stories are told too as the events and formalities that follow such a death go on. And just what happened that night becomes a little clearer.
None of the stories are remarkable, but all are utterly believable.
The cleverness of the construction and oh so vivid, changing voices that make them work. The words are fractured, poetic, and utterly moving.
It would be true to say that it is bleak, dark and depressing; but it would also be true to say that it is a story is happening, could happen anywhere. One lapse, one misjudgment, one piece of bad luck can turn a life.
Not a pretty picture, but a striking one.
And a book that somehow, in a way I can’t quite explain, adds up to much more than the sum of its parts.
Simply extraordinary.
And a prize winner? Yes, it definitely should be.
I love books that leave me speechless like that!
it’s not a comfortable read, but it’s definitely a quietly powerful one, and well worth picking up.
I read this a couple of months ago, and it took me totally by surprise. Really some extraordinary writing.
I’d loved Jon Mcgregor’s previous books, but this still knocked me sideways. I can’t explain how it works, but it really does.
I was impressed with his earlier book, If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable Things, and plan on reading this one, too… eventually. Great review!
You really must read it JoAnn, but it’s a book you have to save for the right moment, the right frame of mind.
This sounds extraordinary – I was bowled over by If nobody speaks.
The style remains the same, but there has been a progression – and, at the risk of stating the obvious, this is a darker, rather differently focused work.
I don’t think I am in a right frame of mind to read this book now — but I will definitely add it to the list.
What a wonderful review!
It is a book that you need to find the right moment for. When you have the strength and empathy to deal with the subject matter.
I ordered this from the library last week. It seems that word has already got out about how good this is as there are several people in front of me in the queue, but I am really looking forward to reading it once my turn comes.
I was surprised to find this on the returns trolley in my library so soon. And I’ll be very curious to here your thoughts once you make it to the front of the queue. Even The Dogs does have at least a couple of things – simple plot, bleak outlook – that you don’t generally favour.
I love your review, especially this: “It would be true to say that it is bleak, dark and depressing; but it would also be true to say that it is a story is happening, could happen anywhere. One lapse, one misjudgment, one piece of bad luck can turn a life.” It sounds like a book I’d love, as I tend to love stories that make me realise just how precarious our good fortune is, and how easily we could BE the people whose misfortune we lament.
Real and compelling…this is my kind of read. I so hope that it is one that I can get my hands on!!!
Sounds incredibly sad, but relevant. Thanks for your review!
Wow! I would not normally be interested in this type of book, but your review is so compelling!
I just completed this book and enjoyed it tremendously. I love his writing. I loved If Nobody Speaks of Remarkable things and enjoyed So Many Ways to Begin. Even the Dogs is such a powerful story because of the way it is told. Glad you enjoyed it too. I can’t wait for his next book.