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The Hidden Life of Humans
Behind everyone's official life lies the unofficial, secret and perhaps ultimately more real existence. The Hidden Life of Humans, an outrageously hilarious novel, lays bare the entirely comic disparity between our private and public selves, as seen through two very different points of view; human and canine. Dana Jaeger, a single woman in her early 40s with an unswerving allegiance to a state of arrested adolescence and Murphy, the opinionated canine for whom she is sitting for an ex-lover tell a charming tale of relationships and understanding. Often hilarious, full of colorful and compelling characters and laced with humor and romance, The Hidden Life of Humans exposes a world of hidden truths, equivocating realities and parallel galaxies.
376 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 1997
6 people are currently reading
56 people want to read
About the author
Erika Ritter
10 booksErika Ritter is a Canadian playwright and humorist. She studied drama at McGill University and the University of Toronto. In addition to her published work, she has written and hosted programming for CBC Radio. Ritter was host of Saturday Stereo Theatre (1983–1984), Dayshift (1985–88), Air Craft (1988–1990) and Ontario Morning (2000–2005). She has also served as guest host on numerous programs, including As It Happens, The Sunday Edition, The Arts Tonight, Here and Now and Fresh Air, all on CBC Radio One.[1]
Two of her plays, The Passing Scene and Murder at McQueen, have been produced at Toronto's Tarragon Theatre.
Two of her plays, The Passing Scene and Murder at McQueen, have been produced at Toronto's Tarragon Theatre.
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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
November 9, 2015
First, the good: this book had a really cute cover. Now, the bad, which is all of the rest of it. Have you ever had a friend who couldn't just say a thing simply, but instead had to get sidetracked into endless pointless tangents, or who tried much too hard to be clever, until you just wanted to shake her and shout, "Get to the point!"? Erika Ritter is that friend.
She's terrifically fond of similes and metaphors. Especially long unnecessary ones that go on and on. The story here is simple: forty-something television writer Dana fills her life, such as it is, with meaningless hook-ups with married men. Lo and behold, she falls in love with one of them, an annoyingly British one named Carl who is basically full of manure. Will she ever realize she could have more out of life? Will she ditch these bozos and move on? Does anyone care what she does by the time they've slogged through almost 400 pages of her self-absorbed nonsense?
Oh, I almost forgot. About 10% of the novel is narrated by a dog named Murphy. That's the cleverest, best part of the book. The rest of the time is taken up with Dana's boring life, her incredibly irritating friend Karen--who calls Dana "Katie", because, teh quirky--Dana's imaginary conversations with people who aren't even really there, which drag on for eons, and of course, the obligatory and endless similes and metaphors.
If you want to read a terribly over-written novel about a not very interesting woman, a novel that never will grab you or make you curious about how anything will come out--except for the sainted dog--this is for you. Otherwise, drop this turkey off the nearest cliff and run away.
She's terrifically fond of similes and metaphors. Especially long unnecessary ones that go on and on. The story here is simple: forty-something television writer Dana fills her life, such as it is, with meaningless hook-ups with married men. Lo and behold, she falls in love with one of them, an annoyingly British one named Carl who is basically full of manure. Will she ever realize she could have more out of life? Will she ditch these bozos and move on? Does anyone care what she does by the time they've slogged through almost 400 pages of her self-absorbed nonsense?
Oh, I almost forgot. About 10% of the novel is narrated by a dog named Murphy. That's the cleverest, best part of the book. The rest of the time is taken up with Dana's boring life, her incredibly irritating friend Karen--who calls Dana "Katie", because, teh quirky--Dana's imaginary conversations with people who aren't even really there, which drag on for eons, and of course, the obligatory and endless similes and metaphors.
If you want to read a terribly over-written novel about a not very interesting woman, a novel that never will grab you or make you curious about how anything will come out--except for the sainted dog--this is for you. Otherwise, drop this turkey off the nearest cliff and run away.
December 11, 2022
This book was quite the slog. I found the characters to be pretty unlikeable, even the dog, who was the whole reason I was excited to read this book. The story just dragged on and on with very little feeling of development.
May 5, 2017
Could not get into this book. Slow to start.
February 28, 2024
I was just not into reading this book. I didn’t like the character development of any of the characters, including the dog, which is unfortunate, because that’s part of the reason I wanted to read this book.
March 2, 2021
Can Ms. Ritter EVER land of a review of much more than three stars???
December 26, 2021
A funny coming of middle age book. With Dana who is very witty and Murphy the dog she grows to love. Worth reading. Originally published in 1997 and later reprinted.
August 24, 2012
My confession: this is not the sort of book I would usually read. I am mainly a sci-fi/fantasy junkie, and this is about as far from that as you can get.
That said, Ritter writes well. It is obvious that she has a love of language. Her characters each have their own voice, even when viewed through the lens of the protagonist. The human protagonist is flawed in a way that makes her real - she doesn't always make the best choices, and admits to that.
The dog... I wish there had been more from the dog. I also wish that I had his straight-forward, unbridled view of the world. Murphy left me wondering more than once: could it really be that simple? Am I just overcomplicating things? I suspect the answer is "yes".
In any case, this is a great beach book (or train, or cottage) - the sort of thing that might make you wonder a bit, but doesn't tax you too hard.
That said, Ritter writes well. It is obvious that she has a love of language. Her characters each have their own voice, even when viewed through the lens of the protagonist. The human protagonist is flawed in a way that makes her real - she doesn't always make the best choices, and admits to that.
The dog... I wish there had been more from the dog. I also wish that I had his straight-forward, unbridled view of the world. Murphy left me wondering more than once: could it really be that simple? Am I just overcomplicating things? I suspect the answer is "yes".
In any case, this is a great beach book (or train, or cottage) - the sort of thing that might make you wonder a bit, but doesn't tax you too hard.
February 22, 2025
Behind everyone's official life lies the unofficial, secret and perhaps ultimately more real existence. The Hidden Life of Humans, an outrageously hilarious novel, lays bare the entirely comic disparity between our private and public selves, as seen through two very different points of view; human and canine. Dana Jaeger, a single woman in her early 40s with an unswerving allegiance to a state of arrested adolescence and Murphy, the opinionated canine for whom she is sitting for an ex-lover tell a charming tale of relationships and understanding. Often hilarious, full of colorful and compelling characters and laced with humor and romance, The Hidden Life of Humans exposes a world of hidden truths, equivocating realities and parallel galaxies.
June 22, 2008
I didn't give this one much of a chance actually. I read enough to find some interesting points of view (one chapter told by a human, and the next by a dog). I also never read watership down or the white bone because i think i have a problem reading from an animal's point of view. Someday I'd like to though.
August 23, 2012
This was fun. I read it ages ago and really enjoyed it. Gave a copy to my friend I knew would live it. Time for a reread!
April 9, 2014
Marvelous read...highly recommended!
Read
August 21, 2014Book was ok, I lost patience with the main character towards the end, couldn't really connect with her. Loved the dog, wished he had more to say...
June 4, 2008
I've posted a review of this book on my blog.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews