A Dog's Life [Hardcover]

Peter Mayle (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2, 1996

The bestsellling author of A Year in Provence and Hotel Pastis now surveys his territory from a differnt vantage point: the all-fours perspective of his dog, Boy--"a dog whose personality is made up of equal parts Boswell and Dr. Johnson, Mencken and A. A. Milne" (Chicago Sun-Times). Enhanced by 59 splendidly whimsical drawings by Edward Koren.


From the Trade Paperback edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Both canine "memoir" and cautionary tale, this sprightly account of the further adventures of Boy, Mayle's real-life dog introduced in Toujours Provence, is a gem of its kind. As animated by Mayle, Boy is a clever chap given to literary allusions, urbane observations and stinging bon mots. With many an arch and insightful comment, Boy celebrates his life after he escapes from his first owner, a brutish farmer, and is adopted by a kindly woman (thereafter called madame) and her "other half," a rather dim-witted soul who is of course Mayle himself. Boy's encounters with wrathful butchers and irate owners of dogs in heat and of treed cats are the high points of this picaresque tale, balanced by his admonitions on how to acquire social polish and communicate effectively with insensitive humans. From his spot under the dining-room table, Boy receives "a wide ranging, eclectic education," learning chiefly that "the management," as he calls his owners, are incorrigible and bibulous party givers. Boy himself proves incorrigible too: in hilarious scenes, he explains how he overestimates human intelligence time and again. While most of the episodes have the ring of truth, those toward the end of this slim volume veer toward farce and bear the marks of having been thought up to pad out the pages. Yet this is a delightful read, augmented by Koren's suitably droll illustrations, and the closing sentence is worthy of inclusion in any quiz about famous last lines. 125,000 first printing; author tour; Random House audio book.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Woof! Woof! After so many books by our two-legged "best friends" that try to decipher our "secret lives", it's so nice to have someone of our kind tell it like it really is. A dog's life can be very a good one indeed, especially if you are as lucky as the hero of our story to find an aimable human companion like Mayle, author of A Year in Provence (LJ 4/1/90), and Hotel Pastis (LJ 9/1/93). In this charming, if at times too cutsey, memoir, Boy, a shaggy but highly intelligent canine of mysterious lineage (we never use the politically incorrect "mutt"), recounts his humble beginnings with his 12 siblings, his abandonment by his mother and later by his unpleasant owner, and his wanderings through the Provencal countryside until he is adopted by the Mayles (an event also recounted in Toujours Provence, LJ 51/1/91). Judging from Edward Koren's drawings, what Boy lacks in devasting good looks is made up by his plucky personality. Canine lovers as well as francophiles and fans of Mayle's books will enjoy this. I give it three paws.
Wilda "Coco Chanel" Williams, "Library Journal"
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing (October 2, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0517172429
• ISBN-13: 978-0517172421
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (59 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,220,019 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book will have you howling., March 30, 2001

By 

Denise Bentley "Kelsana" (The California Redwoods) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: A Dog's Life (Paperback)

Written from a dog's point of view, "BOY" tells us of his trials and tribulations as he reminisces about his life. Born to a litter of 13 pups, feeding was not always easy; sometimes the closest he got to mother's milk was sucking on his brother's ear. The management team, as he so fondly calls his owners, changes after BOY fails at hunting, not realizing he is supposed to point at the bunny in the bush not pounce on it to play. We are privy to his courting of a female half his height, which was doomed from the start, along with his love of chickens and the utilities man, the fun never ends.

The scenarios are endless and each one more entertaining than the last. The book on tape is read by Simon Jones whose British accent enhances every sentence. A light, quick read that will lift your spirits and make you smile. Kelsana 3/30/01

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Perfect light read, August 3, 2001

By 

ProsaicParadise (Laurel, MD United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Dog's Life (Paperback)

When I picked this book up because, hey, I like dogs, and I had also heard from my parents that Peter Mayle was a very entertaining author, I thought that it might be something to just use as a diversion, like one would a magazine. I was very impressed! In fact, contrary to the thoughts of another reviewer on here, I think this is my favorite book by Mayle. Perhaps it is because I'm a dog person that I like it so much, but I really felt that this book was touching and funny and everything I would want in a light read. I haven't been as able to get into Mayle's other works, but I was immediately immersed in this one.

On less subjective notes, Mayle's use of language is excellent and the structure of the book is very pleasing, particularly to those of us who don't mind a little anthropomorphic bits in our lives here and there. Don't fool yourself, if you are thinking this will take any extra time to read, in fact, the book just whizzes by so fast, I was certainly left wanting more when I finished. Also, if you're depressed, this book will make you smile when you don't even think you could.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Superbly written tongue-in-cheek insights by a furball., July 3, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: A Dog's Life (Paperback)

I really can't recall ever having read something that elicited as much laughter as "A Dog's Life"! Peter Mayle is a truely gifted story-teller with a wickedly well-honed wit and sense of humour. The way he writes it, you would have thought a real dog was behind the book! Another reminder to all and sundry once again of the joys that dogs (and puppies) can bring to our otherwise (despondent) lives....or is it, as Boy puts it, all a conspiracy anyhow, seeing as to how we humans excellently serve as "convenient support systems"? Highly recommended for everyone, dog-lovers or otherwise!