Site Meter Genre Fiction » Blog Archive » Don’t Read This Book: `The Dogs of Babel’

Don’t Read This Book: `The Dogs of Babel’

by

There are some books that should never be read. Somewhere along the line an editor approves the author and their idea, without realizing that the story is no good.

The Dogs of Babel (2004) by Carolyn Parkhurst is one of these novels.

I had heard of the book when it was first released. It struck an interest with me, but not enough to pick it up. But when Wal-mart had a copy for only $5, I grabbed it.the-dogs-of-babel.jpg

The story is explained as such: When his wife dies unexpectedly, and suspiciously, in the backyard, with only the dog as a witness, Paul becomes obsessed with trying to teach his dog to speak and reveal the mystery behind her death.

In the process however, Paul accidentally discovers an underground cult of animal-abusing linguists who slice and dice dogs’ throats and vocal chords to try and mimic human anatomy. The scenes are gross, disturbing, and unfortunately memorable. Sure, the ideas are original, but there is a reason for that: no one wants to read about grotesque abuse.

Parkhurst starts with a quirky tale of sorrow and tragedy reminiscence of The Lovely Bones. But where Alice Sebold was able to keep the reader hooked into a mystery, Parkhurst looses sight of her original plotline and goes for shock and disgust instead of cohesion, suspense, and mystery-solving.

Even Amazon.com’s review of the book - printed on the same page where the book is for sale - condemns the novel:

“Unfortunately, the second half of The Dogs of Babel takes too many odd twists and turns–everything from a Ms. Cleo-like TV psychic to an underground sect of abusive canine linguists–to ever allow the reader to feel any real sympathy for the main characters.”

Obviously, some people enjoyed - the Today Show made it part of their book club. But there are so many other great novels out there, that The Dogs of Babel is not worth the time and will leave you with haunting memories of brutal scenes.


One Response to “Don’t Read This Book: `The Dogs of Babel’”

  1. Living Without Meat » Blog Archive » Animal Lovers Be Warned: Movies to Avoid Says:

    [...] * The Dogs of Babel by Carolyn Parkhurst: “Oh,” I thought, “what a cute plot. A murder mystery where only the pet dog was a witness.” Not so at all. The scenes describing the creepy cult of men that mutilated dogs in hopes of giving them ability to speak were so disturbing and vivid. Do not read this book. Ever. [...]

Leave a Reply


About Genre Fiction

There's nothing quite the same as a good fiction novel. They weave you through triumphs and struggles, real life situations and fantasy lands, great characters that become like best friends and sickening antagonists. But how do you choose a good fiction book? How do you decide which stories will be worth getting to know? Genre Fiction has all these answers and more! Keep up with which books are soaring the bestsellers lists, which writers are on tour, and which books are being made into films. Read reviews of fiction books from both yesterday and today. Delve into the authors' lives. Most of all, find good fiction books to add to your shelf.

Genre Fiction Author(s)

Blogging Flair

iGive.com

Books & Writing Channel Posts

  • A Book by Any Other Name - God(s)
    Welcome to this week’s A Book By Any Other Name! The game works like this: Each week I will choose a word and offer a few titles that I’ve come up with containing that word in the title. Then [...]
  • Saturday Poll - The New Year
    What are your writing goals for the new year?(online surveys) The funny thing is I'm pre-posting this in July. It's almost scary to be thinking about 2010... [...]
  • A Book by Any Other Name - Sign
    Welcome to this week’s A Book By Any Other Name! The game works like this: Each week I will choose a word and offer a few titles that I’ve come up with containing that word in the title. Then [...]
  • Saturday Poll - Holidays
    How are your holidays going?(poll) [...]
  • A Book by Any Other Name - Need
    Welcome to this week’s A Book By Any Other Name! The game works like this: Each week I will choose a word and offer a few titles that I’ve come up with containing that word in the title. Then [...]
  • Saturday Poll - Music
    Do you listen to music when you write?(polls) [...]
  • A Book by Any Other Name - Promise
    Welcome to this week’s A Book By Any Other Name! The game works like this: Each week I will choose a word and offer a few titles that I’ve come up with containing that word in the title. Then [...]
  • Saturday Poll - Pen Names
    Do you have/plan to have a pen name?(surveys) [...]
  • A Book by Any Other Name - Right
    Welcome to this week’s A Book By Any Other Name! The game works like this: Each week I will choose a word and offer a few titles that I’ve come up with containing that word in the title. Then [...]
  • Saturday Poll - Tis the Season
    Do you write 'seasonal' stories?(polls) [...]

Hot Off The Press