The Pups

by David Perlmutter

This is the story of the Pups, a team of canine superheroes-cum-comedians who exist in a future universe where canine beings such as they, while sentient and intelligent, are denied full "human" rights. Beginning with the story of how they came to be, it goes on to explore how they established their entertainment and super-heroic careers. This is a reprint of a work originally published in limited form in 2011 by Twisted Library Press.

162 pages, Paperback

First published September 6, 2011

About the author

David Perlmutter is a freelance writer based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He is the author of America Toons In: A History of Television Animation (McFarland and Co.), The Singular Adventures Of Jefferson Ball (Chupa Cabra House), The Pups (Booklocker.com), Certain Private Conversations and Other Stories (Aurora Publishing), Honey and Salt (Scarlet Leaf Publishing), The Encyclopedia of American Animated Cartoon Series (Rowman and Littlefield, forthcoming) and Orthicon; or, the History of a Bad Idea (Linkville Press, forthcoming) He can be reached on Facebook at David Perlmutter-Writer, Twitter at @DKPLJW1, and Tumblr at The Musings of David Perlmutter (yesdavidperlmutterfan).

Reviews

[Sheila · Rating 2 out of 5]

Hmm, how to review this book. First off, I have to say this is one of the most unique books I have come across in a very long time. There is really no comparison to it, and I can't think of any book I have read that is even similar to it. Even the cover is unique.

But with it's uniqueness also came some issues for me. First, the book is written in a alternating first person narrative style, with six humanized, super-hero dogs taking turns telling their story. I am not a fan of first person narratives, so this was a bit off-putting to me. And this novella also has footnotes, many repeated editorial footnotes, throughout the whole story. For me these footnotes broke up the flow of the story, and I would have much preferred they not been included.

Since this book is so unusual, I looked up the author's biography here on Goodreads. It states: "His passions are American television animation... literature (especially science fiction and fantasy) and music (rhythm& blues, soul, funk and jazz.) This explains why much of his writing is as nonconventional and defiant as it is. He is challenged with Asperger’s Syndrome, but considers it an asset more than a disability."

Well, his biography definitely nailed this book. Nonconventional and defiant is an excellent way to describe this story. As his asset of Asperger's helps explain to me why he took some of the unique twists and turns that he took with this story.

In the end though, this novella didn't work for me as a novella. In my opinion, the story seems more suited as an animated television show, which may be what the author originally intended, since it is listed as one of his passions. I could picture this novella as the start of a cartoon series, along the lines of Scooby Doo and company, or the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. This seems to be the medium that it is better suited for.

But for others, who enjoy this type of story in novella form, this might be right up your alley.

[Felicia A Sullivan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another book I edited, now a published book. No zombies....this one is for the fantasy/superhero lovers. Check out the Amazon description - I don't know how to add it to GR.

http://www.amazon.com/Pups-Deedee-Dav...