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My Talks with Dean Spanley
The classic humorous novella about an alcohol-loving clergyman who thinks he is the reincarnation of a dog. Complete with the screenplay and photos from the new film starring Peter O’Toole and Sam Neill.Dean Spanley is the very archetype of a bland churchman: affable, conventional, prudent without being a prig. Only his keen interest in the transmigration of souls and almost excessive enthusiasm for dogs betray any shadow of eccentricity. And then, richly primed with a few glasses of Imperial Tokay, he slips over the threshold between past and present and becomes a dog. Or are his canine memories no more than fancy? Surely no mere dean could speak so vividly, with such total conviction, of the joys of hunting, of rolling in fresh dung, of baying the moon? No human could know so much of rabbiting, the importance of buying bones, the contemptibility of pigs. My Talks With Dean Spanley, first published in 1936, is certainly Lord Dunsany’s funniest book and, in its unique way, a remarkable tour de force.Now adapted into a new comedy-drama feature film, DEAN SPANLEY follows a father and son as they encounter the eponymous eccentric in this story of reincarnation and reconciliation set in Edwardian England. Adapted by Alan Sharp (Rob Roy) and directed by New Zealand-born Toa Fraser (No.2), a truly impressive international cast is led by eight-time Academy Award nominee Peter O'Toole (Venus, Lawrence of Arabia) and also features Jeremy Northam (The Winslow Boy, Gosford Park), Bryan Brown (Cocktail, Gorillas in the Mist) and Sam Neill (Jurassic Park, My Brilliant Career).This special edition includes Lord Dunsany’s witty and inventive original novel, as well as Alan Sharp’s hilarious screenplay, which faithfully adapts and also expands upon the events in the book. Complete with colour photos and interviews with the principal film-makers, this whimsical, wintry tale about dogs, reincarnation and the effects of alcohol makes perfect Christmas reading for lovers of classic humorous storytelling.
Edward Plunkett, Lord Dunsany, was born in 1878. Early passions for chess, guns and dogs stayed with him on his path through Eton, Sandhurst and the Coldstream Guards. His untidiness and eccentricity set him apart from his fellow officers, and the Irish peer left the army after the South African war to concentrate on hunting, cricket and, increasingly, wriiting. He wrote nearly 50 books and plays between 1905 and his death in 1957.Alan Sharp was born in Dundee in 1934 and is an award-winning screenwriter, from TV plays for the BBC and ITV in the 1960s to major film scripts, including Rob Roy (1995). He now splits his time living in Scotland and New Zealand.
70 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1936
24 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
Lord Dunsany
680 books839 followersEdward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, eighteenth baron of Dunsany, was an Anglo-Irish writer and dramatist, notable for his work in fantasy published under the name Lord Dunsany. More than eighty books of his work were published, and his oeuvre includes hundreds of short stories, as well as successful plays, novels and essays. Born to one of the oldest titles in the Irish peerage, he lived much of his life at perhaps Ireland's longest-inhabited home, Dunsany Castle near Tara, received an honourary doctorate from Trinity College, and died in Dublin.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
May 14, 2011
This delightful and amusing and extremely well-written little novel is the tale of an earnest and somewhat odd fellow seeking to learn more about reincarnation. He strongly suspects, for various reasons, that a certain dean was a dog in a previous life. Here, then, is a potential first-hand account! But, since the dean is close-mouthed about this, how to get him to talk about it?
The best way, decides our narrator, is to ply the dean with just enough of a rare and exotic wine – Imperial Tokay -- to get him tipsy enough to lapse unawares into reveries about his prior canine life. But it must be just the right amount. Too little, and he remains on guard. Too much Tokay and he will become drowsy and doze off. It’s all very logical and scientific, you see.
Lord Dunsany uses the first-person narrative to great effect in creating his eccentric and absurd characters and situations. There is much funny stuff. The Dean’s doggy opinions and observations on such topics as why rabbits have tails, why cats are disgusting, and the joys and considerable perils of digging, are funny and sweet and a bit poignant.
Most of the humor and pleasure is due to Dunsany’s charming style. His literate, elegant prose makes for smooth, easy, delightful reading. The book just grabs you by the arm and pulls you on, effortlessly, into the wonderful little world that is created here. I wish he’d written a hundred little books like this one.
This is a small classic of gentle, off-center humor. I became aware of this novel via the wonderful recent movie based on it. That movie is grand and I highly recommended it as well. The movie builds on the book and extends the plot in marvelous ways, with a wonderful performance by Peter O’Toole.
The best way, decides our narrator, is to ply the dean with just enough of a rare and exotic wine – Imperial Tokay -- to get him tipsy enough to lapse unawares into reveries about his prior canine life. But it must be just the right amount. Too little, and he remains on guard. Too much Tokay and he will become drowsy and doze off. It’s all very logical and scientific, you see.
Lord Dunsany uses the first-person narrative to great effect in creating his eccentric and absurd characters and situations. There is much funny stuff. The Dean’s doggy opinions and observations on such topics as why rabbits have tails, why cats are disgusting, and the joys and considerable perils of digging, are funny and sweet and a bit poignant.
Most of the humor and pleasure is due to Dunsany’s charming style. His literate, elegant prose makes for smooth, easy, delightful reading. The book just grabs you by the arm and pulls you on, effortlessly, into the wonderful little world that is created here. I wish he’d written a hundred little books like this one.
This is a small classic of gentle, off-center humor. I became aware of this novel via the wonderful recent movie based on it. That movie is grand and I highly recommended it as well. The movie builds on the book and extends the plot in marvelous ways, with a wonderful performance by Peter O’Toole.
August 28, 2013
I watched a mesmerizing video a few nights ago, a 2008 movie titled "Dean Spanley," starring Jeremy Northam, Peter O'Toole, Sam Neill, and Bryan Brown. It was utterly winning, as we gradually learn that the very proper Edwardian gentleman perfectly played by Sam Neill (no less than a dean in the Church of England) will, when sufficiently in his cups, reveal that in a previous life he was a dog. And that there was no greater pleasure. There is much, much more to the movie than this, and it is quite unforgettable. It was inspired by this book, and it surpasses its source. The book is a quick read, about 100 short pages, but is mostly just toying with the idea and playing with it for amusement.
April 11, 2011
Finally, a Lord Dunsanay work I can recommend with an unclouded brow. Dean Spanley is a witty delight, a tongue-in-cheek investigation of a Dean (in the religious sense) who may or may not be a reincarnation of a dog. We learn a lot about how dogs really think in the process, not to mention something about fine wine.
The irony is that Dunsanay was just having a bit of fun with this novella, but Alan Sharp turned it into something much more moving and profound by adding a plot line for the movie version that will break your heart. And then Jeremy Northam, Sam Neill, and most of all Peter O'Toole turn it into movie magic with some unforgettable acting.
This particular version has both the original novella and the screenplay, and it's fascinating to compare the two.
This is one of those rare instances when the movie is much better -- deeper and more profound -- than the book. But Dunsanay was aiming at something much simpler -- a bit of fun -- and he hit that perfectly too.
The irony is that Dunsanay was just having a bit of fun with this novella, but Alan Sharp turned it into something much more moving and profound by adding a plot line for the movie version that will break your heart. And then Jeremy Northam, Sam Neill, and most of all Peter O'Toole turn it into movie magic with some unforgettable acting.
This particular version has both the original novella and the screenplay, and it's fascinating to compare the two.
This is one of those rare instances when the movie is much better -- deeper and more profound -- than the book. But Dunsanay was aiming at something much simpler -- a bit of fun -- and he hit that perfectly too.
September 18, 2020
I'm glad I finally read this novel by Dunsany. I've known of it for some time, watched the movie twice, and purchased a copy of the hardback a year prior to writing this.
So there is no shortage of comments on the premise of the novel, where our narrator, a scientific writer, decides to perform research on one Dean Spanley, of whom knowledge comes in a mysterious manner which leads him to believe there is a mystery here.
And he's right. The Dean is given--after imbibing a certain very rare and pricy wine known as Imperial Tokay (or Tokaji) which hails from certain wine regions in Hungary and Slovakia--to reveal elements of a former life ... elements, that is, with which only a dog would be familiar. Formerly reserved for royals, it is very rare for this wine to fall into the hands of commoners and so it is that only a handful of individuals at the Olympus Club have experienced the rare treat of Dean Spanley rhapsodizing on things canine.
To me, the most enjoyable passages were when the Dean got into his cups and we, the reader, then catch a rare glimpse of what it might be like to be a dog. In this, Dunsany excelled. I quite enjoyed the passages where the Dean would become transported, and he would go on about smells, or the benefit of eating rabbits or how he didn't trust the moon because he could neither hear its approach nor smell it, and he had to remind the moon that his house was well guarded.
Quite humorous was the notion the Dean gave that, as a dog, he both respected his Masters, but also felt they were quite ignorant on certain aspects. For instance, they require constant guarding, only they don't seem to be aware of it!
And as to smells, why, when one rolls in the lovely aromas found behind the barn, it should be appreciated. Instead, the Masters would throw a hissy, and off our poor Dean would go, to roll in the grass until all that lovely aroma was gone, just to please the Wise Ones.
Listen to how he goes on about guarding the house:
But that final chapter... I wondered, as I read along, how Dunsany would wrap it all up and bring it to a close. And he did so masterfully which should really come as no surprise. Oh, don't worry, I wouldn't dream of spoiling it for you. But it was amazing. I will say one thing about it without giving anything away, that in comparing it with the end of the movie, which is utterly different, that I wish they had somehow worked Dunsany's ending in there as well. I would have found it . . . transporting.
So there is no shortage of comments on the premise of the novel, where our narrator, a scientific writer, decides to perform research on one Dean Spanley, of whom knowledge comes in a mysterious manner which leads him to believe there is a mystery here.
And he's right. The Dean is given--after imbibing a certain very rare and pricy wine known as Imperial Tokay (or Tokaji) which hails from certain wine regions in Hungary and Slovakia--to reveal elements of a former life ... elements, that is, with which only a dog would be familiar. Formerly reserved for royals, it is very rare for this wine to fall into the hands of commoners and so it is that only a handful of individuals at the Olympus Club have experienced the rare treat of Dean Spanley rhapsodizing on things canine.
To me, the most enjoyable passages were when the Dean got into his cups and we, the reader, then catch a rare glimpse of what it might be like to be a dog. In this, Dunsany excelled. I quite enjoyed the passages where the Dean would become transported, and he would go on about smells, or the benefit of eating rabbits or how he didn't trust the moon because he could neither hear its approach nor smell it, and he had to remind the moon that his house was well guarded.
"You can hear footsteps," he went on, and you can follow a smell, and you can tell the sort of person you have to deal with, by the kind of smell he has..."
Quite humorous was the notion the Dean gave that, as a dog, he both respected his Masters, but also felt they were quite ignorant on certain aspects. For instance, they require constant guarding, only they don't seem to be aware of it!
And as to smells, why, when one rolls in the lovely aromas found behind the barn, it should be appreciated. Instead, the Masters would throw a hissy, and off our poor Dean would go, to roll in the grass until all that lovely aroma was gone, just to please the Wise Ones.
Listen to how he goes on about guarding the house:
"One night I remember a fox came quite near to the house and barked at them. Came out of the woods and on to our lawn and barked. You can't have that sort of thing. There's no greater enemy of Man than the fox. They didn't know that... he has no reverence for Man, and no respect for his chickens. I knew."
But that final chapter... I wondered, as I read along, how Dunsany would wrap it all up and bring it to a close. And he did so masterfully which should really come as no surprise. Oh, don't worry, I wouldn't dream of spoiling it for you. But it was amazing. I will say one thing about it without giving anything away, that in comparing it with the end of the movie, which is utterly different, that I wish they had somehow worked Dunsany's ending in there as well. I would have found it . . . transporting.
May 15, 2025
"In vino veritas"
What an utterly charming story! I smiled or chuckled at least 50 times while I read. A feel-good story if ever there was one.
This is the story for a dog-lover. Unlike the film--which is magnificent-- there is no Peter O'Toole character, but never mind, you will love it anyway because the dreamy recollections of Sam Neil are all here. Plus more of them.
Our narrator, a self-styled scientific writer, has noticed that local Dean Spanley acts somewhat out of the ordinary for his position and invites him for drinks to dig for more information that is not of your typical collegiate ordained perspective. After a few drinks, the Dean slips and talks as if he is remembering his previous life--a quite perfectly pleasant and robust life--as a dog. The drink that brings the Dean's canine recollections back most reliably is Imperial Tokay, at just the right amount, not too much, not too little, and accompanied by the most delicate of verbal encouragements. Else, the Dean will snap out of it, back to the dull, respectable dean with his wide white collar.
The scientist narrator is absolutely convinced of the truth of the Dean's recollections and is driven to discover the keys of transmigration so that he can pass this amazing revelation on to the whole of other European fellows, astounding them with proofs that the Eastern religion is right. It takes him many dinner invitations to Dean Spanley, many glasses of Imperial Tokay, and also the enticement of a few friends to help things along.
He ultimately does learn the secrets he wanted to know. And that's all I can say.
Dean Spanley (aka Wag, aka Moon-chaser) says of man's secret to creating fire, "On the day that he gives to dogs that secret, as he one day will, dogs and men shall be equal."
It wouldn't take much to convince me that dogs are already equal. Quite possibly superior.
What an utterly charming story! I smiled or chuckled at least 50 times while I read. A feel-good story if ever there was one.
This is the story for a dog-lover. Unlike the film--which is magnificent-- there is no Peter O'Toole character, but never mind, you will love it anyway because the dreamy recollections of Sam Neil are all here. Plus more of them.
Our narrator, a self-styled scientific writer, has noticed that local Dean Spanley acts somewhat out of the ordinary for his position and invites him for drinks to dig for more information that is not of your typical collegiate ordained perspective. After a few drinks, the Dean slips and talks as if he is remembering his previous life--a quite perfectly pleasant and robust life--as a dog. The drink that brings the Dean's canine recollections back most reliably is Imperial Tokay, at just the right amount, not too much, not too little, and accompanied by the most delicate of verbal encouragements. Else, the Dean will snap out of it, back to the dull, respectable dean with his wide white collar.
The scientist narrator is absolutely convinced of the truth of the Dean's recollections and is driven to discover the keys of transmigration so that he can pass this amazing revelation on to the whole of other European fellows, astounding them with proofs that the Eastern religion is right. It takes him many dinner invitations to Dean Spanley, many glasses of Imperial Tokay, and also the enticement of a few friends to help things along.
He ultimately does learn the secrets he wanted to know. And that's all I can say.
Dean Spanley (aka Wag, aka Moon-chaser) says of man's secret to creating fire, "On the day that he gives to dogs that secret, as he one day will, dogs and men shall be equal."
It wouldn't take much to convince me that dogs are already equal. Quite possibly superior.
August 21, 2013
In his essay in this book, screenwriter Alan Sharp describes the risk that the filmmakers were taking with ‘Dean Spanley’: ‘mixing Chekhov with Gilbert & Sullivan’. It could have been an embarrassment. The extraordinary thing is that the film succeeds, brilliantly. For pure pleasure ‘Dean Spanley’ is one of my favourite films of the last 10 years. It is like a late Beethoven quartet – chamber music, essentially a four-hander, quirky and conversational, oddly moving, played by four virtuosos and conducted with perfect balance. I can’t think of another film which combines the silly and the sublime in quite the same way.
This book contains Lord Dunsany’s original story, Alan Sharp’s screenplay, and essays about the making of the film by Sharp, the producer, and the director. Comparing story and script is a fascinating insight into the process of adaptation, and the essays give an equally fascinating insight into the process of getting a film made.
Five stars is generous – but I love the film, and to have this elegantly produced little book (also available as an ebook) as a companion to it is a joy.
This book contains Lord Dunsany’s original story, Alan Sharp’s screenplay, and essays about the making of the film by Sharp, the producer, and the director. Comparing story and script is a fascinating insight into the process of adaptation, and the essays give an equally fascinating insight into the process of getting a film made.
Five stars is generous – but I love the film, and to have this elegantly produced little book (also available as an ebook) as a companion to it is a joy.
April 11, 2013
The movie is much better. This book was written for a 19th Century audience and probably made a big splash with its treatment of "the transmigration of souls" or reincarnation. If you compare the book with the movie though, I think you might be disappointed. Both are funny, interesting, and informative. The book is just so "small" compared with the movie, which expanded the character count and changed the plot in ways that appeal to the modern reader/movie-gower. I highly recommend the movie, "Dean Spanley", but not the book.
September 9, 2025
This little novel by Lord Dunsany was published in 1936. It's probably one of the better known of Dunsany's works, because it was made into a movie in 2008.
The first-person protagonist realizes that a very proper churchman, Dean Spanley, can remember the time of his previous incarnation as a dog—when plied with exactly the right amounts of rare port and wine. In the interests of "science," the narrator spends the book teasing out from Dean Spanley some remarkable features of the life of a dog.
Dunsany himself was a lover of dogs, and the book is given a ring of authenticity through Dunsany's many years of close observation of them. Nevertheless, Dunsany is restrained, and the book is imbued with his whimsical and very dry, very British, sense of humour. It belongs to what might be called the "tall story" genre, which Dunsany perfected through his tales of Jorkens.
In his previously published novel, Up in the Hills, Dunsany also attempts a dryly humourous story, though I think he misses the mark. He gets it just right with My Talks with Dean Spanley. Of course, to my mind, everything Dunsany wrote from the late 1920's onwards suffers by comparison with his early fantasy. However, My Talks with Dean Spanley is surely one of Dunsany's better books that are not pure fantasy.
The first-person protagonist realizes that a very proper churchman, Dean Spanley, can remember the time of his previous incarnation as a dog—when plied with exactly the right amounts of rare port and wine. In the interests of "science," the narrator spends the book teasing out from Dean Spanley some remarkable features of the life of a dog.
Dunsany himself was a lover of dogs, and the book is given a ring of authenticity through Dunsany's many years of close observation of them. Nevertheless, Dunsany is restrained, and the book is imbued with his whimsical and very dry, very British, sense of humour. It belongs to what might be called the "tall story" genre, which Dunsany perfected through his tales of Jorkens.
In his previously published novel, Up in the Hills, Dunsany also attempts a dryly humourous story, though I think he misses the mark. He gets it just right with My Talks with Dean Spanley. Of course, to my mind, everything Dunsany wrote from the late 1920's onwards suffers by comparison with his early fantasy. However, My Talks with Dean Spanley is surely one of Dunsany's better books that are not pure fantasy.
February 27, 2023
I really enjoyed this read. I have previously watched the movie (a couple of times…) and loved it - hence wanting to read the novel. It was interesting and enjoyable to read to original and the development of the script for the film - read the book and watch the film!!
September 22, 2010
A first person narrative of a man who meets Dean Spanley, an elder minister, at his club and discovers the Dean has a strong belief in Reincarnation. He begins to suspect the Dean has more than a belief, he may have actual memories of a past life and becomes determined to find out. Hoping to find scientific proof of the transmigration of souls if he can get Dean Spanley to talk, the narrator invites him to dinner. Believing in the adage "In vino veritas" he plies the Dean with wine. When Spanley drinks too much Imperial Tokay, a rare Hungarian wine, he starts talking about his former life as a country hound in the first person.
The narrator is astounded by the revelation and invites Spanley back several times hoping to discover scientific proof of reincarnation in Spanley's stories of his life as a dog. Each visit is harder since Spanley does not like to drink to excess, but each lapse reveals more of his canine existence.
An excellent short novel full of wonderful detail and dry understated humor. Recently made into a film called simply Dean Spanley starring Jeremy Northam and Sam Neill, this is a delightful tale.
The narrator is astounded by the revelation and invites Spanley back several times hoping to discover scientific proof of reincarnation in Spanley's stories of his life as a dog. Each visit is harder since Spanley does not like to drink to excess, but each lapse reveals more of his canine existence.
An excellent short novel full of wonderful detail and dry understated humor. Recently made into a film called simply Dean Spanley starring Jeremy Northam and Sam Neill, this is a delightful tale.
December 7, 2010
The original tale 'My talks with Dean Spanley' is a whimsical and amusing tale of a man and his past life as a dog. Strange but endearing. Brought back into print with the new film, this book contains the original story plus the new screenplay.
This is a lovely and quite charming adaptation with the addition of a new character and focus that brings it to life and gives it heart. It certainly makes me keen to see the movie and the interviews and perspectives along with the photos of the production really make this a nice book. Plus the design of this small hardback is fantastic.
This is a lovely and quite charming adaptation with the addition of a new character and focus that brings it to life and gives it heart. It certainly makes me keen to see the movie and the interviews and perspectives along with the photos of the production really make this a nice book. Plus the design of this small hardback is fantastic.
November 13, 2010
I absolutely loved this quirky tale of a Dean, the epitome of rectitude, who after a glass or two of Imperial Tokay, enters an altered state when he recalls his previous life as a dog. The edition I read also has the screenplay of the film and some accounts of how the film came to be made. I found the whole process of how a book is translated into a film enthralling. I shall certainly try to see the film.
March 21, 2013
This is an elegant fantasy about a man who was once a dog. If you are a dog person you will find the vision of the internal life of a dog hilarious. The story comes to an abrupt and frankly unsatisfying end. Fortunately it was turned into a movie with Peter O'Toole, Bryan Brown and Sam Neill. Read the book first then see the movie for a more robust,more emotional ending.
February 25, 2020
Affectionate tale without a lot of emotional depth set in Edwardian England about a man (Dean Spanley) who remembers once being a dog and the narrator's attempts to get Spanley to revisit those memories through the fog of Tokay wine. Enjoyable and humorous at times, and at only 122 pages, the novelette is an easy read. Prior to this I had only read Dunsany's The King of Elfland's Daughter which I absolutely loved for its rich language and storytelling (Fantasy, not being much of a genre I'm interested in), and knowing that the author can write more simply but with just as much skill, has made me want to seek more of his fiction out.
This edition contains the Screenplay by Alan Sharp for the film directed by Toa Fraser which is a fantastic bonus, and supplementing this - along with photo stills from the film as well as behind-the-scenes footage - at the end are three different accounts of how the film got made: from Sharp reading the original story by Lord Dunsany, to writing the script, and then further adapting it; Metcalfe's road through producing it; and Fraser's experiencing coming on to direct and some of the things he learnt going from directing unknown actors to highly regarded film legends on this his second film!
This edition contains the Screenplay by Alan Sharp for the film directed by Toa Fraser which is a fantastic bonus, and supplementing this - along with photo stills from the film as well as behind-the-scenes footage - at the end are three different accounts of how the film got made: from Sharp reading the original story by Lord Dunsany, to writing the script, and then further adapting it; Metcalfe's road through producing it; and Fraser's experiencing coming on to direct and some of the things he learnt going from directing unknown actors to highly regarded film legends on this his second film!
February 8, 2022
Comic novella about an academic who stumbles on the secret of a dean he knows from the club. The secret, unknown to the dean himself, is that worthy's past life as a dog. Through various wiles all of which involve getting the dean into a past life regression by making him slightly tipsy, mainly on tokay, he draws certain doggy stories from the churchman's lips. The plot is not entirely satisfactory. Each effort is pretty similar to the last. And the stories of a Victorian dog are pretty much what might be expected from a Victorian dog. A light read for a couple of hours
November 21, 2021
Edward John Moreton Drax Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany (1878-1957), an Anglo-Irish writer who produced over 90 books under the name of Lord Dunsany, worked in Ireland with both Yeats and Lady Gregory. Dean Spanley: A Novel, which includes the screenplay for the movie of the same name, is a playful tale of Dean Spanley’s recollections of his past life as a spaniel. His dog’s-eye-view stories are fun, whimsical, and sometimes quite inspirational. The movie is even more enjoyable.
August 19, 2018
An easy, quite charming read, about a Dean who can only remember his past life as a dog when he's drinking Tokay. This edition also contains the screenplay for the 2008 movie, but I haven't read that portion of it as the novel's made me now want to see the movie...
November 6, 2024
Cute premise and fairly suavely executed by Dunsany but one of the all time worst cop-out endings. I love dogs. Why are dog books always so disappointing?
The movie version with Sam Neil and Peter O’Toole in his last role is great, by the way.
The movie version with Sam Neil and Peter O’Toole in his last role is great, by the way.
December 28, 2018
This is a hoot. It's a delightful read and most amusing.
May 12, 2024
Quite enjoyed it
July 13, 2015
It's normally a fairly common complaint amongst those of us who are readers that "the movie is never as good as the book". Dean Spanley might just be the exception to that rule.
The ebook of this contains both Lord Dunsany's original novella and Alan Sharp's amazing script for the movie, allowing a fascinating insight into the process of adapting a story for the screen.
The original short story is a humorous but flimsy concept: the narrator of the tale meets an Anglican Dean (the Dean Spanley of the title) who, if plied with sufficient quantities of Imperial Tokay (a rare Hungarian liquor), then happily regales his listener with tales of his past life ... as a dog.
What makes this concept so amusing is simply the grand, highly eloquent English vocabulary that the Dean uses to describe something as ordinary as barking at the moon or running around in circles before lying down.
It's great fun but not a masterpiece.
Writer Alan Sharp and producer Matthew Metcalfe loved the idea of turning this into a film but realised the idea needed more padding out.
So Sharp invented the character of the narrator's Father, a crotchety old buzzard who treats his son with disdain while simultaneously refusing to mourn the loss of his other son in the Boer war.
It is against this rather sad background that Sharp inserts the story of the reincarnated Dean and the end result is quirky, hilarious and ultimately quite moving.
And that's just the script. Seeing the finished product acted by Jeremy Northam, Peter O'Toole, Bryan Brown and Sam Neill takes it to a whole new level again.
In short, one of the most amazing film adaptations I've ever read and a great complement (or introduction) to the film.
The ebook of this contains both Lord Dunsany's original novella and Alan Sharp's amazing script for the movie, allowing a fascinating insight into the process of adapting a story for the screen.
The original short story is a humorous but flimsy concept: the narrator of the tale meets an Anglican Dean (the Dean Spanley of the title) who, if plied with sufficient quantities of Imperial Tokay (a rare Hungarian liquor), then happily regales his listener with tales of his past life ... as a dog.
What makes this concept so amusing is simply the grand, highly eloquent English vocabulary that the Dean uses to describe something as ordinary as barking at the moon or running around in circles before lying down.
It's great fun but not a masterpiece.
Writer Alan Sharp and producer Matthew Metcalfe loved the idea of turning this into a film but realised the idea needed more padding out.
So Sharp invented the character of the narrator's Father, a crotchety old buzzard who treats his son with disdain while simultaneously refusing to mourn the loss of his other son in the Boer war.
It is against this rather sad background that Sharp inserts the story of the reincarnated Dean and the end result is quirky, hilarious and ultimately quite moving.
And that's just the script. Seeing the finished product acted by Jeremy Northam, Peter O'Toole, Bryan Brown and Sam Neill takes it to a whole new level again.
In short, one of the most amazing film adaptations I've ever read and a great complement (or introduction) to the film.
August 28, 2025
In a nut shell, this is the story of an English dean who is able to remember his past life as a dog when he drinks a rare wine.
This is a fun little book, and I think dog lovers will find it amusing, but I honestly think the movie is more enjoyable. The book is wordy and repetitive, and the ending was a bit of a let-down. That being said, it was probably considered original and unique in its day. It's a quick read, though, so it's worth a try.
This is a fun little book, and I think dog lovers will find it amusing, but I honestly think the movie is more enjoyable. The book is wordy and repetitive, and the ending was a bit of a let-down. That being said, it was probably considered original and unique in its day. It's a quick read, though, so it's worth a try.
July 10, 2016
Original and Quirky
I stumbled upon the movie based on the novella and loved it, so naturally I had to read the original. This version contains both Dunsany's story and the screen play. The screen play, with it's extended story line is more emotionally satisfying, but of course it wouldn't have existed without the extraordinarily inventive original.
I stumbled upon the movie based on the novella and loved it, so naturally I had to read the original. This version contains both Dunsany's story and the screen play. The screen play, with it's extended story line is more emotionally satisfying, but of course it wouldn't have existed without the extraordinarily inventive original.
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July 14, 2020I recently stumbled across the movie Dean Spanley, I will read the novel in the future , but the movie is nothing short of a masterpiece. I thought Dr. Zhivago was the greatest movie of all time , but this tops it. Almost always the book is superior to the movie, but this is a cinema darling you will fall in love with.
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May 31, 2011Edwardian era tale told in the third person. The ice breaking relationship of a father and son relating to reincarnation. Very good.
January 3, 2016
Inventive, and especially so for its time, but dated. I wanted to read it because of the film, but the two are different works.
December 30, 2017
As others have pointed out, the plot of the movie is better. That said, this book is a pleasant romp through reincarnation and British eccentricity.
October 24, 2016
"We feel like travellers who once,for a short while,have seen something very strange,and neither of us can remember what it was."
April 28, 2013
Not as good as the film
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