There Is No Dog

by Meg Rosoff Narrated by Steven Boyer

Overview

Meg Rosoff counts the Michael L. Printz Award, the Guardian Children's Fiction Prize, and a Carnegie Medal among her impressive accolades. Praised as a ''cheeky and subversive fantasy fable'' by Horn Book, There Is No Dog explores the question ''What if God were a teenage boy?'' Bob created the heavens and all the creatures on land and sea, but every time he falls in love, natural disasters on Earth follow. So imagine his dismay when he falls harder than ever for an irresistible girl named Lucy.

Editorial Reviews

Ron Charles

The comedy here is pratfall-subtle, but it's spiked with some surprisingly tough theological questions about the reason for suffering, the problem of free will, and the existence of God…
—The Washington Post

Publishers Weekly

Rosoff (Just in Case) looks at the world’s natural disasters, injustices, and chaos and presents a perfectly reasonable explanation: God is a horny teenage boy. According to this gleefully heretical account, God, aka “Bob,” was given Earth by his mother, who won the planet in a poker game. Bob showed flashes of brilliance during Creation, but he feels little responsibility for the planet. When he falls head-over-heels in lust with a beautiful zoo employee, Lucy, Bob’s passion and growing anger toward those who would keep them apart is manifested through wildly fluctuating weather and rampant flooding. Meddling, peevish, and self-absorbed, Rosoff’s pantheon recalls the squabbling deities of Greek and Norse mythology. She takes gleeful pleasure in reducing God to an inept, lovelorn child, her takedowns often delivered through the dry observations of Bob’s industrious assistant, Mr. B., who “marvels that the same God who leaves his dirty clothes in a moldering heap by the side of the bed could have created golden eagles and elephants and butterflies.” Traditionalists may bristle, but there’s no denying that Rosoff’s writing and sense of humor are a force of nature themselves. Ages 12–up. (Jan.)

From the Publisher

"...earns its place among the sharpest-witted tours de force of recent memory." — Kirkus, starred review

"Wildly inventive and laugh-out-loud funny..." — Booklist, starred review

"...there's no denying that Rosoff's writing and sense of humor are a force of nature..." — Publishers Weekly, starred review

"Cheeky and subversive." — Horn Book, starred review

"Rosoff has a good time with her hunky, ne'r-do-well deity . . ." — The Washington Post

Horn Book

"Cheeky and subversive."

starred review Booklist

"Wildly inventive and laugh-out-loud funny..."

The Washington Post

"Rosoff has a good time with her hunky, ne'r-do-well deity . . ."

Booklist

"Wildly inventive and laugh-out-loud funny..."

School Library Journal - Audio

Gr 7–10—Rosoff offers an intriguing look at what the world would be like if God was actually a horny, hormonal, and self-centered teenage boy named Bob. Whenever Bob falls in love, natural disasters follow, leaving his assistant at his wits' end. Bob's latest love is Lucy, a zoo volunteer hoping for love and falling head over heels for Bob, though she grapples with his confusing random presences and disappearances. Bob's mother has lost his "beloved" pet in a card game, further compounding his emotional eruptions. Rosoff has created much for discussion, whether one believes in God or not, and narrator Steven Boyer competently performs the material. The pacing and delay between tracks is moderately frustrating, but Boyer quickly draws listeners back into the story. He uses appropriately whiny tones to voice the moody teenage boy. While listeners will never be confused as to whose point of view is being conveyed, Boyer most distinctly voices Bob and his mother. While not a first purchase, listeners will likely contemplate the points raised long after they finish the book.—Stephanie A. Squicciarini, Teen Services Librarian, Fairport (NY) Public Library

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up—Have you ever read the Bible or classical myths and thought that God's and/or Zeus's behavior seemed a bit arbitrary? Perhaps even vindictive and downright selfish? Here, the mercurial nature of the deity is creatively explained: God is, in fact, a teenage boy—moody, self-obsessed, and entrusted with overseeing a low-priority corner of the universe called Earth. God's name is Bob, and Earth's creatures are his rather slapdash inventions, made hastily in six days and then abandoned to a fate of chaos and self-destruction. Meteorological catastrophes correspond to Bob's mood swings and sexual frustrations. Wars and conflicts result from his failure to pay attention to human folly. Loosely supervised by an exasperated paternal figure known as Mr. B, Bob spends his time whining and pining after beautiful human females. The story's main thread follows his latest infatuation with a kindhearted, animal-loving beauty named Lucy. The omniscient narration moves quickly, with plenty of wacky tangential details to amuse even the quirkiest readers. Easy to read, thoroughly amusing, and thought-provoking, this title will appeal to teens who like their humor offbeat and irreverent. Give it to fans of Neil Gaiman and Terry Pratchett's Good Omens (Workman, 1990) and Douglass Adams's Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (Harmony Books, 1980).—Emma Burkhart, Springside School, Philadelphia, PA

SEPTEMBER 2012 - AudioFile

What if the creator of the earth were a lazy, self-indulgent adolescent boy? He is still all-powerful, all-seeing, and all that, but he’s also feckless and horny, letting his reckless sex drive control him as he wreaks havoc on the planet. Steven Boyer narrates with a wonderfully wry tone that takes listeners into his confidence. His characterizations are thoroughly enjoyable; characters range from a petulant and whiny Creator to a proper British administrative assistant; a young, soft-spoken zookeeper; and a nasal, thick-voiced creature called an Eck (whose only vocalizations are also its name). Boyer keeps this short philosophical experiment on track while recounting all the wacky hi-jinks caused by an adolescent god. G.D. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

Kirkus Reviews

Bad luck for Earth that the job of the Almighty went to a horny, indolent teenager named Bob whose mother, Mona, won it in a poker game. In a few flashes of brilliance, Bob created the heavens and the earth, adding short-lived mortals in his own image, which seemed like a colossal mistake to his assistant, Mr. B. Humankind has been dealing with God's adolescent mood swings ever since. If Bob seduces one more girl, it'll be the end of Mr. B's rope—he's already considering turning in his resignation. A veteran of middle management, he's having his own identity crisis. While Bob fantasizes about "soapy sex" with Lucy, an assistant zookeeper praying for someone to fall in love with, the world drowns in Bob's bathwater. Meanwhile, Bob's pet, Eck, a penguin-like little creature with far more empathy than his owner possesses, is the latest victim of Mona's excesses. Beneath the light, snarky banter lie provocative ideas. As Bob himself wonders, "if life were without flaws and no one ever changed or died, what role would God have?" A piece of graffiti spurs Bob to get his planet under control, to surprising effect. Irreverent and funny, this book is sure to put off those concerned about blasphemous ideas showing up in teen literature, but it earns its place among the sharpest-witted tours de force of recent memory. (Fiction. 14 & up)

Product Details

BN ID:	2940169099423
Publisher:	Recorded Books, LLC
Publication date:	08/24/2012
Edition description:	Unabridged
Age Range:	12 - 17 Years

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