Fifteen Dogs (Quincunx, #2) in The Roundtable

Mar 28, 2015 Lark Benobi rated it really liked it

Shelves: male-identified-authors, 2015

There is something immediately gripping about this novel. Its core conceit--that 15 dogs become suddenly human-like in their ability to reason and perceive their own mortality--was a very effective way to explore one of the oldest adages in philosophy: whether it's true that "the unexamined life is not worth living." The story is beautifully told. It gave me new spaces in my brain to think about some very old questions. ...more

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May 07, 2021 Lise Petrauskas rated it really liked it

Shelves: 21st-century-fiction, animals, philosophy-religion-psychology, canada

I don't know what to say about this book! While I was reading it, I was pretty engrossed. There was a lot to like about it, and I thought it was an interesting thought experiment. Alexis stayed true to the original premise in that events were at times random and cruel, at others, quixotic and delightful, which, given that this is a world governed by the Greek gods, makes perfect sense. Ironically, it may be the gods' interference that made this book less compelling to me as it sort of took the m ...more

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Nov 25, 2015 Susan rated it it was amazing

Shelves: world-lit-na-canada, literary-awards, philosophy, 21st-century, scotiabank-giller, alt-tob-2016

Seldom, if ever, do I read the last pages of a book first. It may have been appropriate to do so with this work. The author adds a note about Dog Poetry with an explanation of sorts. There are fifteen dogs, there are fifteen poems and each of the fifteen dogs is associated with their own poem. This was a struggle for me. I think I worked out four or five of them but the rest, not so much.

The sons of Zeus are bored and decide to have a bit of sport by placing a wager on what will happen if a dog ...more

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May 29, 2018 Lauren rated it really liked it · review of another edition

The Greek Gods liked to mess with people, either because of some perceived slight, or because they were bored. Often times they turned them into animals. So it seems rather believable that, over beers in a tavern one day, Hermes and Apollo give 15 dogs human level intelligence just to see what will happen. Lots happens, and I don't want to spoil any surprises, but much of it is not good. This is not a book for young children.

I thought it was going to be a five star read, but honestly, the book ...more

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Sep 09, 2015 Heather(Gibby) rated it really liked it

Shelves: giller-prize

I am not a dog person, so I was skeptical going into this book. Then it starts with a couple of Greek Gods placing bets, ok, did not win me over. I knew it was a short quick read, so I kept going.

At the heart of this quirky book is really the question, what makes us human? Is it intelligence ?, emotions or some innate sense of being?

A really unique perspective, well written.

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