What Do Dogs Dream? [Hardcover]

Louise Rafkin (Author), Alison Bechdel (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1998

There lies Rover-or Lily, Goofs, or Spot-sleeping on the couch, slightly woofing, then growling, now twitching, as he naps. Most dog owners wonder, "Oh, I bet he's dreaming that he's chasing a bunny-how cute!" and let it go at that. In What Do Dogs Dream?, author and observant dog owner Louise Rafkin unleashes her vivid imagination on what dogs might actually be dreaming if they could tell us, and the dreams are a lot more fun than chasing furry creatures. Coupled with witty illustrations by artist Alison Bechdel, the result is a hilarious look at what dogs' fantasies might be.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 48 pages
• Publisher: Andrews McMeel Pub (October 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0836267745
• ISBN-13: 978-0836267747
• Product Dimensions: 5.3 x 5.3 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,795,854 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars What fun!, May 3, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: What Do Dogs Dream? (Hardcover)

The author of this book has clearly heard lots of people describe dreams, and knows dogs well, too. It was so much fun to look at the ideas she came up with for various breeds, and touching that the "mutts" got star billing, too. I have, and will, give this book as a gift.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars What do dogs dream, November 1, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: What Do Dogs Dream? (Hardcover)

For any one who loves dogs, this book was so funny and true. A great stocking stuffer for Christmas

3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Role Reversals, October 11, 2000

By 

Donald Mitchell "Jesus Loves You!" (Thanks for Providing My Reviews over 110,000 Helpful Votes Globally) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 100 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: What Do Dogs Dream? (Hardcover)

Apparently what dogs dream about is being either human, or having the circumstances of their lives switched. Many humorous ones occur in this well-done book.

For example, "I dreamed I showed up at the park and I was naked, only the other dogs were, too -- Angel, Pekingese, three." This is clearly a dream that a human would have. The dogs are coyly posed to cover their more private areas with daffodils and such.

On the other hand, a Dalmatian dreamed "I was black with white spots" which is another type of reversal, while still being a dog.

Sometimes the relationship with humans is reversed to take a dog-centered approach as in this dream about training school, "[W]e were learning . . . how best to annoy cats."

The human reversal shows up with a sheep dog who "was taken off the farm and given a desk job."

The reversal of roles with humans shows up in a cartoon of dogs eating in a restaurant while noting "our people had to wait for us [outside], and it was raining."

The cartoons are cleverly and beautifully done by Alison Bechdel and add much to the book.

I have two complaints which led to the book being graded down two stars. First, the style is nicely done so that it could appeal to adults or children. The only problem is that some of these cartoons have "adult" humor in them in the form of sexual references, which make the book inappropriate for children from my point of view. That was a shame since children like to have fun with cartoons even more than most adults. If you want to show this to your children, be sure to censor those parts.

Second, cartoon books greatly benefit from an introduction to put the work into context. Since I always grade down The New Yorker cartoon books for this, I felt that I must do so for this one also. By the way, The New Yorker dog cartoon collection is better than this one both because it has more cartoons and because they are on more varied themes. On the other hand, this one is much less expensive if you are on a budget for a gift. Almost any dog lover would enjoy this book, except those who are easily offended by sexual references.

The idea of role reversals is an interesting one. I suggest that you think about your spouse, sibling, or best friend, and imagine reversing roles with that person. What humorous situations can you think of? What improvements in your life come to you?

Keep laughing! Laughter is very healthy for you according to Dr. Dean Ornish.