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Red Dog is a book by a writer in love. While passing through a town in the Australian outback, novelist Louis de Bernières discovered a statue of a dog. Intrigued, he made inquiries, and was swamped by locals with tales of a wildly charismatic creature named Tally Ho. De Bernières, author of Corelli's Mandolin, has fashioned a charming picaresque of Tally's misdeeds and misadventures, not least of which involve the animal's enormous appetite (complemented by an equally enormous flatulence). "Tally," he writes, "was the most notorious canine dustbin in the whole neighbourhood. With apparent relish he ate paper bags, sticks, dead rats, butterflies, apple peel, eggshells, used tissues and socks." De Bernières' enchantment with this "dustbin" is a reflection of a larger rapture: here is a writer who has fallen for Australia itself. He wittily captures the country's cadences, its landscape, its weakness for the (literal) underdog. --Claire Dederer
--This text refers to the
Hardcover
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
The best stories about animals are really stories about the people who form bonds with them, and therein lies the central fault of this extremely slender effort from the celebrated author of Corelli's Mandolin. Apparently, de BerniŠres was so taken with a statue of a sheepdog he found in an unnamed town in Australia that he had to uncover the sources that fed the local legend. He transformed them into this picaresque narrative, a series of tall tales, written in a self-consciously folksy style about the animal known variously as Red Dog, Tally Ho and Bluey. Because de BerniŠres anthropomorphizes him, Red Dog comes across as all too human, while the people who know and love him are mere stick figures; the author acknowledges he "invented" them and it shows. While the dog does possess an uncanny ability to make his wants and needs known (more probably, it's the uncanny predilection for humans to interpret the dog's various "communications"), these tall tales simply aren't tall enough. To be effective, the anecdotes that make up the book should be surprising, amazing or at the very least delightful, but Red Dog's adventures are mundane. The dog is clearly meant to evoke the pioneering Australian's conception of himself: independent, resourceful, footloose and stubborn. Red Dog is also prone to aggressive flatulence, presumably not an element of the Australian character. No doubt there was an Australian sheepdog that was well-loved by a circle that transcended a single family or even a town, but it's a stretch to turn that idea into a book, even one as slight as this one. Dog lovers might bite, but other readers should beware. The book is charmingly illustrated by Alan Baker, and includes a useful glossary of "Australianisms."
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.
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First Sentence
'Strewth,' exclaimed Jack Collins, 'that dog's a real stinker! Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
'Strewth,' exclaimed Jack Collins, 'that dog's a real stinker! Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
1.0 out of 5 stars
Let red dogs lie.,
By
This review is from: Red Dog (Hardcover)
To put my 1 star into some context, let me start by saying I have no hesitation in rating all four of Louis de Bernieres previous books either 4 or 5 stars. His style has in the past proven to be so rich and his characters so compelling that I was greatly looking forward to this book's release. In fact, having previously lived in Australia for many years myself I was particularly delighted to hear that the Pilbara was to be the setting. Regrettably, the results are utterly underwhelming. I have my suspicions that Louis may have been trying to write a children's book that somehow failed to be marketed as such. As a follow up to his previous works this narrative is about as flat as Australia itself. Trying perhaps to evoke the straight forward and rugged lifestyle of many of the Pilbara's real-life residents, Louis has completely dispensed with his fine-tipped word brush and turned to a very direct and simple style. In doing so he seems to have stripped himself of the tool that proved so much at the center of his masterful previous efforts. Sure, the notion of a dog being loved and known in a community that thinly stretches across hundreds of rugged miles is not a bad subject matter. But, this book never reaches any kind of emotional plateau and the annecdotes, at least as conveyed, really aren't interesting enough to move forward under their own steam. The human characters are paper thin throughout and even Red Dog himself remains distant. Finally, the attempt by Louis to use Aussie vernacular is so deliberate and forced that it is, to Aussie ears almost impossibly bad. It leaves you cringing the way actors with bad accents do. Sorry Louis. I'll be there waiting for your next book, but honestly, reading this one was hard bloody yakka.
5.0 out of 5 stars
Rusty the rover,
By Stephen A. Haines (Ottawa, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews (HALL OF FAME) (TOP 50 REVIEWER) (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Red Dog (Paperback)
We consider Canis familiaris a "domestic breed", but there are some dogs who cannot abide constant human contact. A brief contact, particularly for meals or temporary shelter is enough. Then, it's off again on a fresh exploration or hunt. Such a dog was the rust-coloured kelpie living in Western Australia's Pilbara mining territory. Known as "Red Dog" for obvious reasons, this animal moved through the human community entirely on his own terms. De Bernieres traces much of Red Dog's life, or at least what could be determined from interviews and newspaper accounts, presenting it as a continuous story. It's a captivating read from the opening page.Although this book might be considered in the "young folks" genre of the "Lassie" or "Shep" variety, Red Dog was real. Giving him a name would have been out of place. De Bernieres introduces him as "Tally Ho", but that was in his early years when Red Dog's centre of operations was a caravan inhabited by an older couple. Moving into a mining community, Red Dog discovered how to manipulate the miners, all men without companions, and the surrounding communities. They petted, fed and sheltered him in turns. He cadged rides in buses, cars, even on the train running south to Perth, nearly 1500 kilometres distant. As the town grew, Red Dog improved his tastes, hitting hotels and restaurants for culinary leftovers. He took up with one of the workers, but John's death in the bush led Red Dog to further his explorations. He was seeking his lost "master". The stories of Red Dog's wanderings give de Bernieres an opportunity to apply his descriptive skills to the people and the countryside. He fully captures the Australian inflections, and notes how a mining town was a magnet for itinerants. Immigrants of varied origins accumulated in the mining environment, learning co-operation and "mateship" while retaining their individuality. Australian men "don't cry", but it was acceptable when an Italian rough cries over a Red Dog injury - "because that's what Italian men do". Australia may be "the island continent", but that doesn't mean uniformity of outlook. The local policeman is vividly expressive about the local selectors putting out strychnine to reduce the dingo population. Red Dog's story is almost unique in animal lore. We are fortunate that a writer of de Bernieres' talents was the one who spent the time and effort to reconstruct Red Dog's story. He's produced an outstanding account, one which appeals to all ages and to any nationality. For those outside Australia, there's a glossary of common terms provide further meaning. Anybody who's owned a dog will find this a welcoming read. Those who haven't shared part of their life with a floppy-eared, tongue-wagging, devoted, endlessly challenging animal will learn here what they've been missing. [stephen a. haines - Ottawa, Canada]
5.0 out of 5 stars
absolutely delightful,
This review is from: Red Dog (Hardcover)
a beautifully written tale of an exceptional resident of Western Australia. Mr. Bernières captivates his readers as deeply as the Red dog captivates all of the characters. I have this goofy smile that appears on my face whenever I think of Red dog.
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