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Automatic Safe Dog
In this, his extraordinary debut novel, Jet McDonald has created a heady brew of volatile cocktail ingredients. Madcap surreal hu-mour blends with vicious parody of the world of work, the vanity of "Creative" types, the torments of unrequited love, animal cruelty and the excesses of consumer society. Words and sentences undergo some kind of alchemy under McDonald's reckless stewardship, he whips them up into little frenzies like performing pooches and makes them jump through the burning hoops of our open mouths and frazzled brains. Not so much a breath of fresh air as a snort of something industrial, read this book and become initiated into a rebellion of the mind that will leave you inspired and laughing with exhilaration.
270 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2011
18 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
February 4, 2013
This is really a 4.5 star book because there were editing problems throughout the electronic copy I was sent to read. Which is a shame because this was an unexpectedly amazing book.
You can read my entire discussion over on I Read Odd Books but here's a snippet from my review:
It won’t give away too much of the plot when I reveal that Telby gets a job with the executive board at Pet Furnishings. On his first day, he meets his staff and coworkers, as one does. It is here that we meet Abel, Telby’s assistant and one of the randomest and silliest characters in a book fairly teeming with random and silly characters.
Telby’s interactions with Abel are always a bit unsettling.
Abel is writing his magnum opus a syllable a day. But no worries. I won’t share Abel’s work in progress as it progresses. But Abel is the source of so much pretentious silliness that he became my favorite character in this often brutal book, because even as he annoys, he is largely benign. There are so many scenes of Abel being a perfect little pedant that it’s hard to pick just one.
You can read my entire discussion over on I Read Odd Books but here's a snippet from my review:
It won’t give away too much of the plot when I reveal that Telby gets a job with the executive board at Pet Furnishings. On his first day, he meets his staff and coworkers, as one does. It is here that we meet Abel, Telby’s assistant and one of the randomest and silliest characters in a book fairly teeming with random and silly characters.
“Abel,” said my secretary, offering his hand. “I’m profound.”
“You’re what?”
“I’m profound.”
“In what way?”
“I’m a writer. I’m only doing this to pay the bills. In fact, I’m an undiscovered great.” Abel seemed to have an impossibly long body, not thin, but long, as if all his mass had been extruded without losing the breadth. He had enormous nostrils like the vents of jet engines from which a few hairs fluttered between thin lips like a series of mahjong tablets from which the offending spots had been wiped. His puppety arms were continually restless in florid piques of outrage and condescension.
“Also, I don’t do shorthand, it cramps my style.”
Telby’s interactions with Abel are always a bit unsettling.
“Abel?”
“Yes?” He turned his head like a nut on a bolt.
“Why is there a fish swimming in the water cooler?”
“It’s a Pampas fish; it gobbles up the detritus and keeps the water clean. They harvest them from whales.”
“Doesn’t it, you know, contaminate the water?”
“It makes a very nutritious effluent. It charges the water with vitamins, electrifies its micronutrients. I add them to my bath at home.”
“Your bath?”
“They nibble my body perfectly clean. And it is only when I am perfectly clean that I write my best work. I get out before they micronutrient.”
Abel is writing his magnum opus a syllable a day. But no worries. I won’t share Abel’s work in progress as it progresses. But Abel is the source of so much pretentious silliness that he became my favorite character in this often brutal book, because even as he annoys, he is largely benign. There are so many scenes of Abel being a perfect little pedant that it’s hard to pick just one.
April 12, 2020
Having sat on my shelf for over a year, I finally picked it up and decided to give it a go.
It is a brilliant read and there were several times I thought "who would come up with such a plot, such wild characters.....? "
It then donned on me: with a running joke (the L stands for Lola, you know), that this book at times reminded me of the musings of Robert Rankin through his Far Fling Fiction - a number of which I thoroughly enjoyed.
A great read though.
It is a brilliant read and there were several times I thought "who would come up with such a plot, such wild characters.....? "
It then donned on me: with a running joke (the L stands for Lola, you know), that this book at times reminded me of the musings of Robert Rankin through his Far Fling Fiction - a number of which I thoroughly enjoyed.
A great read though.
June 16, 2012
I first heard of Jet McDonald when I read the Blind Swimmer anthology (it was also published by Eibonvale Press). It contained Pigs Eyes, which was written by Jet McDonald. After reading it I thought it would be nice to read more of his stories, because it was a good story. Now that I've read his debut novel, Automatic Safe Dog, I can say that he's an author to watch, because he has wild and interesting ideas.
I've always enjoyed reading weird and surreal stories, which push the boundaries of normality and acceptability, so I have to confess that the weirdness of Automatic Safe Dog appealed to my weird and twisted sense of humour (some of the best stories I've read have been at least partly weird, so I was fascinated by this book). I didn't know what to expect when I began to read it, but I was pleasantly surprised by it, because it turned to be a witty, funny and unapologetically satirical novel. I don't normally read satirical novels, but every once in a while it's nice to read this kind of stories.
Automatic Safe Dog is an interesting and skewed vision about a modern way of life. It's almost like a vicious parody of working life, consumerism and cruelty towards animals, because all these things get an unforgettable treatment from the author. Consumerism is handled in a satirical and ruthless way in this book, because the author demonstrates how far people are willing to go to achieve certain goals. This book also contains sex.
The main character of Automatic Safe Dog calls himself Terribly Velour or Telby Velour. He's passionately obsessed with a woman called Ravenski Helena Goldbird and will do anything to get her attention and be worthy of her regardless of her treatment of him. Telby is an interesting and a bit eccentric character, who creates a totally new identity for himself (he even creates a fictional career for himself and changes his appearance). Then he takes full advantage of his new career in a corporation called Pet Furnishings.
I liked the other characters too, because they were interesting. Telby's secretary, Abel, is quite a character, because he's only doing his job until he's discovered as a writer. Ravenski Helena Goldbird and Ibore Davidson are interesting characters, because the author uses them to demonstrate how weird business life and creative people can be.
This book contains several brilliant inventions, funny moments and surprises, which are better left unrevealed, because I don't want to reveal everything in this review. The most bizarre thing about this book is what's done to living animals, because they're being turned into furnitures. This is quite shocking and it creates a surreal atmosphere (what's done to the poor animals in the name of business profits is unsettling, but it's also funny in a satirical way).
Jet McDonald manages to infuse his story with twisted and weird humour. For example, the scene where Telby is being interviewed for a new job is quite hilarious, because he's having problems with bladder stones.
It's difficult for me to classify this book, because it's partly surreal satirical fiction and partly mainstream fiction. I decided to classify this book a mainstream book, which contains fantasy elements (this isn't a perfect classification, but it's probably the best way to classify this book).
In my opinion Jet McDonald has a vivid imagination and he writes witty satire about modern way of life, corporate life and unrequited love. He's taken a risk with this book, because writing satire is difficult, but he's managed to write a funny and inventive book, which will appeal to readers who enjoy black and twisted humour. This book reminds me a bit about the works of J. G. Ballard, David Sedaris, Chuck Palahniuk and William Burroughs, but it's distinctively different from their works.
I liked Automatic Safe Dog, because I'm used to reading weird books, but I think I have to be fair to readers and say that depending on your taste in books you'll either like this book or you don't. This book may not be to everybody's liking because of its unconventional themes, but it's worth reading, because it differs greatly from several other new books (it's possible that this book may be too weird for some readers, but in my opinion it offers lots of entertainment for readers who are willing to try something new). If you like surreal fiction and satirical books, you should definitely read this book. It's a one of a kind book.
I've always enjoyed reading weird and surreal stories, which push the boundaries of normality and acceptability, so I have to confess that the weirdness of Automatic Safe Dog appealed to my weird and twisted sense of humour (some of the best stories I've read have been at least partly weird, so I was fascinated by this book). I didn't know what to expect when I began to read it, but I was pleasantly surprised by it, because it turned to be a witty, funny and unapologetically satirical novel. I don't normally read satirical novels, but every once in a while it's nice to read this kind of stories.
Automatic Safe Dog is an interesting and skewed vision about a modern way of life. It's almost like a vicious parody of working life, consumerism and cruelty towards animals, because all these things get an unforgettable treatment from the author. Consumerism is handled in a satirical and ruthless way in this book, because the author demonstrates how far people are willing to go to achieve certain goals. This book also contains sex.
The main character of Automatic Safe Dog calls himself Terribly Velour or Telby Velour. He's passionately obsessed with a woman called Ravenski Helena Goldbird and will do anything to get her attention and be worthy of her regardless of her treatment of him. Telby is an interesting and a bit eccentric character, who creates a totally new identity for himself (he even creates a fictional career for himself and changes his appearance). Then he takes full advantage of his new career in a corporation called Pet Furnishings.
I liked the other characters too, because they were interesting. Telby's secretary, Abel, is quite a character, because he's only doing his job until he's discovered as a writer. Ravenski Helena Goldbird and Ibore Davidson are interesting characters, because the author uses them to demonstrate how weird business life and creative people can be.
This book contains several brilliant inventions, funny moments and surprises, which are better left unrevealed, because I don't want to reveal everything in this review. The most bizarre thing about this book is what's done to living animals, because they're being turned into furnitures. This is quite shocking and it creates a surreal atmosphere (what's done to the poor animals in the name of business profits is unsettling, but it's also funny in a satirical way).
Jet McDonald manages to infuse his story with twisted and weird humour. For example, the scene where Telby is being interviewed for a new job is quite hilarious, because he's having problems with bladder stones.
It's difficult for me to classify this book, because it's partly surreal satirical fiction and partly mainstream fiction. I decided to classify this book a mainstream book, which contains fantasy elements (this isn't a perfect classification, but it's probably the best way to classify this book).
In my opinion Jet McDonald has a vivid imagination and he writes witty satire about modern way of life, corporate life and unrequited love. He's taken a risk with this book, because writing satire is difficult, but he's managed to write a funny and inventive book, which will appeal to readers who enjoy black and twisted humour. This book reminds me a bit about the works of J. G. Ballard, David Sedaris, Chuck Palahniuk and William Burroughs, but it's distinctively different from their works.
I liked Automatic Safe Dog, because I'm used to reading weird books, but I think I have to be fair to readers and say that depending on your taste in books you'll either like this book or you don't. This book may not be to everybody's liking because of its unconventional themes, but it's worth reading, because it differs greatly from several other new books (it's possible that this book may be too weird for some readers, but in my opinion it offers lots of entertainment for readers who are willing to try something new). If you like surreal fiction and satirical books, you should definitely read this book. It's a one of a kind book.
July 21, 2011
Barring unforeseen events, I'll be writing my review tomorrow, and you can see it at http://reviews.futurefire.net sometime soon after that.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews