A Dodo at Oxford: The Unreliable Account of a Student and His Pet Dodo

by Philip Atkins (Editor)

Discovered in a charity shop in Oxford, a diary supposedly written 300 years ago that describes the life of a student of science and his unusual pet. The author recorded the bird's every move, having some idea of its rarity, but not that his pet might have been the last to walk upon the earth. Though doubts have been cast about its authenticity, readers will be able to judge for themselves. Set to be a surprise bestseller.

Genres: Historical Fiction

160 pages, Hardcover

First published September 16, 2010

Reviews

[Forrest · Rating 5 out of 5]

Truth be told, when a friend buys a book for me, I'm more-often-than-not thankful, but shamefully put the book on a pile, probably never to be read again. In this case, however, some good friends of mine, who understand my . . . erm . . . quirky taste in books, picked this up while they were visiting Oxford. They also knew that Oxford is one of my favorite cities in the world, and I've seen a few cities in my time. As a US Air Force brat during the Reagan/Thatcher years, I lived in Bedford, UK, and traveled to Oxford a few times, in which I fell in love with that storied city. So I was delighted to read this book, which is, ostensibly, a "found" diary written by a student at Oxford in the 17th-Century. Said student inherits one of the last of the Dodos and undertakes a study of the bird. But the diary really isn't about the bird, it's about life in Oxford, early modern and modern. The book as an artifact is wonderful, with "found" objects like a collectors card from a pack of cigarettes, a photo of an injured cat, and a series of letters and other documents hinting at the story of a dog being purchased and transported across the country. The many side notes, some of them completely non-sequitor, add a whimsical air to the work, illuminating the story and the book itself, even down to the type of print used in its pages. It is a funny, somewhat surreal contemplation on the city itself, perhaps pointing to the Dodo as a type or symbol of the city itself. But your conclusion might be different - this book lends itself to many interpretations, none of them wrong.

[Annette · Rating 4 out of 5]

I bought this book in the Alice in Wonderland bookstore in Oxford because it sounded fun! And it is fun. It just is not the kind of book we're used to reading. Actually this book is not about the story and the diary. The diary is merely a tool to tell us all kinds of facts about Oxford, college, university, printing, Dodo's and anything else the authors could somehow connect to the diary. It does make the book hard to read, because it's not the kind of book you just read from front to back in one sitting, but I did like the playful way the book taught me a lot of diverse stuff!

[Dodo Strachwitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hilarious book! I hope the other volumes of the diary will be found and published!
The notes on the side are very interesting on their own, especially learning about life in Oxford 350 years ago! Good fun

[AskNezka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fictional or not, this was a neat little book on Oxford's daily life and material culture in the late 17th century. It would be fun if the authors "found" the remaining volumes ...

[Esther · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my all-time favourite books. Absolutely hysterical.

[Hanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Unapologetically geeky book that is a lot more about 17th-century bookmaking and printing than about dodos (though there is a good deal about them too). It's beautifully done, complete with convincing photos of the coverless book, many marginal notes and long appendices which are again mostly about bookmaking. The diary itself is perhaps a little disappointing, though I enjoyed the visionary dreams of 21st century realia. My favourite page is the last one.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Dodo at Oxford is so bizarre! It feels like a love letter to the city, steeped in Oxford history, whimsical scholarship, with asides about the art of bookmaking. Is it a genuine relic or a meticulously crafted hoax? Honestly, I don’t care—it’s the kind of literary esotericist’s dream that checked all my boxes: obscure references, typographical playfulness, and nonsense worthy of Wonderland itself.

[Carmen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lovely layout, a new creative take on a concept that is not that new anymore, and as opposed to many other experimental novels it even contains a cute and slighly entertaining story. There were also some interesting bits of historical information about printing in the back of the book.

[Devilish]

quirky mix of history, bookmaking, bookbinding etc.

[Nathalie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved it. It's historical enough.
But I would really like to know if this is actually a real diary and what's written in it actually happened, or if it's just another fake.

[Kali · Rating 4 out of 5]

i read this for asu's ENG 469. not really my style of book, as i'm not a fan of the dry british comedy or historical fiction genres, so it was interesting to go out of my comfort zones.

the editors find a diary in a bookshop, detailing the time a young man spends studying his dodo, perhaps the last of its kind, at oxford in that pivotal time of scientific exploration and discovery, the late 1600's. but the book splinters in a thousand directions, fragmenting the idea of a book's ability to convey information in all sorts of ways--the editors add continual side notes and questions, not always applicable to the original diary. the diary itself gets odder as the story goes along, with even the dodo itself supposedly writing a diary at one point, along with a several other characters. there is a delightful amount of information and disinformation here, photos of dogs and pylons, smashed flies and children's drawings, all juxtaposed in a way which leaves the reader feeling a a bit like they were caught in a whirlwind of the diary's magnetism, the information and physical stuff the book accrued through the years.

[Valerie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is it authentic? Almost certainly not, but this marvellous concoction is in many ways utterly believable. Giving a great flavor of student life at Oxford in the late 1600s, this little volume is also packed with subtle humor and amusing illustrations. I was completely entertained.

[Sans · Rating 2 out of 5]

One word: tedious.

I'll throw in an additional word, to be inserted before "tedious": unnecessarily.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

5 stars for the concept; 3 stars for the actual thing.

[Fran · Rating 3 out of 5]

Funny little book. Forever confused by the pylons.