Why I Loved Lives of the Monster Dogs (And Why It's A Sci-Fi Masterpiece)
Every now and then, you come across a book that just takes you by surprise. One that just blows you off your feet at how amazing it really is. And let me tell you, Lives of the Monster Dogs by Kirsten Bakis is exactly that kind of book! I read it awhile back (at the beginning of the year, to be exact) and I still find myself thinking about it from time to time. So that's why today I'm going to be talking about it and giving you my thoughts on this one-of-a-kind novel.
Today's book discussion is definitely one that's been the most exciting to write about. It should be assumed that this book is among my list of favorite stories. I might be doing a couple posts in the future to honor some of the great stories I read way before I started Matthew's Bookshelf, so you can expect some more content just like this.
Anyway, that's enough chit-chat from me! Let's get started, shall we?
Today's book discussion is definitely one that's been the most exciting to write about. It should be assumed that this book is among my list of favorite stories. I might be doing a couple posts in the future to honor some of the great stories I read way before I started Matthew's Bookshelf, so you can expect some more content just like this.
Anyway, that's enough chit-chat from me! Let's get started, shall we?
What To Love About Lives of the Monster Dogs:
This is the only published fiction work from Kirsten Bakis (to my knowledge, at least), and with that being said I can't wait for her to write another great story. As much as I want to shout to the world about how awesome this book is, I'm gonna try to contain my enthusiasm as much as I can. Not even sure where to begin on why I think this book is so amazing.
First off, I should just say that I am big lover of all things science fiction. So when I came across this story, I just knew I would naturally fall in love with this book. Not only that, but the overall concept of the dogs made it that much more intriguing. Personally, I think the "monster dogs" would be interesting to see in real life. I'm a dog lover, so I honestly think it would be awesome to see a large, talking and walking version of man's best friend.
The story all starts when a group of "monster dogs" arrive in New York, becoming instant celebrities due to their appearance. These monster dogs in the story walk upright, speak through voice boxes and dress in a Germainic fashion. Being refugees from an isolated town called Rankstadt, they still retain the historic culture of the humans that made them. They live luxurious lives and begin building their own fantastic castle within the city, but they find it hard adjusting to the society of the modern world. A young woman and journalist named Cleo Pira befriends them and discovers that something is lurking among them. An incurable disease is discovered, and threatens to doom the monster dogs with madness and lead them to their extinction.
The plot is definitely a complex one, and has a lot of different viewpoints to explore along the way. But just like the journalist Cleo Pira, you will be instantly swept away into the unusual lives of the monster dogs. Kirsten Bakis has such a great imagination, and she uses it vividly to explore some big themes in a wonderful and magical way.
To be completely honest with you, I personally learned a couple things from this story. This book showed me that friendship can come in many different forms, shapes and sizes, and doesn't have any limits. It also gave me quite a beautiful look into human nature, diving into why we do what we do and what it truly means to be human.
And I'd be a liar if I said that I didn't tear up upon finishing this story, because I did and I'm not ashamed of it. But I'm not gonna spoil it for everybody; if you wanna know about what happens you have to read it for yourself.
The writing is so well-done and many of the passages were written in a way that I found to be quite poetic. I also want to point out that I love all the different points of view that are used to tell the story. We read from diary entries, newspaper articles and even an opera, which I think is pretty cool! And not only do we hear Cleo's side of the story, but we get accounts from Ludwig, who serves as the historian for the monster dogs, and the journals of Augustus Rank, the scientist who created the dogs and their God according to them.
So to wrap things up, this is definitely something that deserves to be read by just about everyone! This is another one of those books that after I just think: "Why didn't I read this sooner?"
First off, I should just say that I am big lover of all things science fiction. So when I came across this story, I just knew I would naturally fall in love with this book. Not only that, but the overall concept of the dogs made it that much more intriguing. Personally, I think the "monster dogs" would be interesting to see in real life. I'm a dog lover, so I honestly think it would be awesome to see a large, talking and walking version of man's best friend.
The story all starts when a group of "monster dogs" arrive in New York, becoming instant celebrities due to their appearance. These monster dogs in the story walk upright, speak through voice boxes and dress in a Germainic fashion. Being refugees from an isolated town called Rankstadt, they still retain the historic culture of the humans that made them. They live luxurious lives and begin building their own fantastic castle within the city, but they find it hard adjusting to the society of the modern world. A young woman and journalist named Cleo Pira befriends them and discovers that something is lurking among them. An incurable disease is discovered, and threatens to doom the monster dogs with madness and lead them to their extinction.
The plot is definitely a complex one, and has a lot of different viewpoints to explore along the way. But just like the journalist Cleo Pira, you will be instantly swept away into the unusual lives of the monster dogs. Kirsten Bakis has such a great imagination, and she uses it vividly to explore some big themes in a wonderful and magical way.
To be completely honest with you, I personally learned a couple things from this story. This book showed me that friendship can come in many different forms, shapes and sizes, and doesn't have any limits. It also gave me quite a beautiful look into human nature, diving into why we do what we do and what it truly means to be human.
And I'd be a liar if I said that I didn't tear up upon finishing this story, because I did and I'm not ashamed of it. But I'm not gonna spoil it for everybody; if you wanna know about what happens you have to read it for yourself.
The writing is so well-done and many of the passages were written in a way that I found to be quite poetic. I also want to point out that I love all the different points of view that are used to tell the story. We read from diary entries, newspaper articles and even an opera, which I think is pretty cool! And not only do we hear Cleo's side of the story, but we get accounts from Ludwig, who serves as the historian for the monster dogs, and the journals of Augustus Rank, the scientist who created the dogs and their God according to them.
In Conclusion...
So to wrap things up, this is definitely something that deserves to be read by just about everyone! This is another one of those books that after I just think: "Why didn't I read this sooner?"
So to be fair, I'm warning you ahead of time that this book will cause you to forget everything around you until you have turned to the last page. And even after that, you'll want to read it all over again. Matter of fact, I might revisit this one again pretty soon! So in conclusion, I would definitely suggest digging into this one. Even if sci-fi and fantasy is not really your thing, this is definitely an unforgettable novel to add to your bookshelf. It sure has a special place on mine!
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