Bringing his empathy and intelligence to oft-told myths and stories, the author of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime updates and recasts these timeless tales in contemporary trappings with effortless grace.
From the bestselling author of The Porpoise come eight mesmerising stories moving between Greek myth and the near future to explore what, ultimately, makes us human
Weaving together Ancient Greek fables with more recent dystopian narratives, Mark Haddon jump starts the heart of these legends told and retold for millennia, and demonstrates their lasting relevance again, in new and unexpected forms.
The lover of a goddess, Tithonus is gifted eternal life, but without eternal youth he must stare into a future of endless old age. The myth of the Minotaur in his labyrinth is turned into a wrenching parable of maternal love for a damaged child – and of the more real monstrosities of patriarchy. Actaeon, changed into a stag after glimpsing the naked Diana and torn to pieces by his hunting dogs, becomes a visceral metaphor about how humans use and misuse animals.
From genetic engineering to the eternal complications of family, from fear of the future to the cruel world of the English boarding school, Haddon showcases masterfully how we are subject to the same elemental forces that obsessed the Greeks. Whether describing Laika the Soviet space-dog on her fateful orbit, or St Anthony wrestling with loneliness in the desert, his astonishing powers of observation are at their height when illuminating the thin line between human and animal.
Publisher: Vintage Publishing
ISBN: 9781784745554
Number of pages: 288
Weight: 485 g
Dimensions: 240 x 161 x 27 mm
'A marvel of a collection - suffused with curiosity, humanity and mystery, bold in its scope and virtuoso in its telling. Mark Haddon makes stories matter' - Kaliane Bradley
'In sentences as precisely cut as paper sculptures, Mark Haddon fits ancient myth to the cruelties and wonders of the present' - Francis Spufford
'Timeless spins on classic Greek myths . . . [Haddon] seems to be toying with the essence of storytelling, the way that it has persevered and sustained itself through the ages . . . The times may change but the stories remain the same in this ambitious, eclectic collection' - Kirkus
I’m looking forward to this – Haddon is reliably excellent - New Scientist
These delicately worked and impressively patient stories show us what other visions might reveal themselves when we are not in too much of a hurry to get to the end - Observer
A gripping exploration of narratives and those who control them…The tight prose and descriptive range are remarkable… There isn’t much room for redemption in this wise, immersive book: but… with a faithful mutt by your side, you’ll (usually) be all right in the end - Spectator
Breathing new life into myths, Haddon heads into the labyrinth in this impressive collection which tackles transformation and transmutation - Daily Mail
Compelling… Haddon’s writing, [is] always rock solid and frequently luminous… All [the stories] are complex, surprising, evocative and richly entertaining - Guardian
Haddon follows his imagination from the human into the animal realm and beyond, into the divine… [in these] supple and emotionally involving tales - Times Literary Supplement
Eight engrossing, inventive retellings of myths… Dogs feature throughout, and it is humans who are the monsters. Highly recommended - Mail on Sunday
Dogs and Monsters is a collection of eight short stories. In three of them, Mark Haddon retells classical myths - Theseus and the Minotaur, Diana and Actaeon, and Eos (Dawn) and Tithonus - and by a simple reframing of... More
This is certainly an interesting collection of short stories taken from different times in the writer's career. I think I'm not well enough versed in the Greek myths to fully appreciate their retelling but... More
Thanks to Net Galley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.
I don't usually read short stories but I enjoyed these. They are all, however, filled with cruelty, sadness and injustice described in a...
More
Please sign in to write a review
Would you like to proceed to the App store to download the Waterstones App?
