The death just before Christmas of Richard Adams, author of Watership Down, prompts our first post of the year - an entry in our occasional 'fist of five' series. These posts pull together five books or stories linked in some way - for instance, by author (Ben Phillips's five stories by H P Lovecraft), genre (Jake Curtis's five graphic novels), theme, idea or even simply by one word (for instance, Mr Hager's five books with 'road' in the title). Today's post focusses on books that look at the world from an animal's point of view.
Obviously, we have to kick off with Watership Down itself. The story of two young rabbits - Hazel and his fragile, visionary brother, Fiver - who must lead their colony on a journey to find a new home when their old warren is destroyed, is as gripping as any epic quest, and, as anyone who read the novel as a young child can probably remember, full of dangers and dark, disturbing encounters. There's a new animated version coming from the BBC and Netflix later this year. Read the novel now to see whether they'll do it justice.
Part of the fascination of Watership Down is how Adams creates a believable rabbit 'culture' - complete with its own religion, stories and myths. Evoking an animal world in a way which is convincing but also convincingly 'other' is one of the challenges Laline Paull tackles in her inventive and highly enjoyable novel The Bees. Banish memories of bad Nicolas Cage movies: this is a compelling, original and ingenious novel, as worker bee Flora 717 goes rogue and the hive - part convent, part Death Star - starts to crumble from within. The Hunger Games meets The Handmaid's Tale, according to website goodreads. Highly recommended.
From Aesop's fables to Animal Farm, writers have used animals to satirise human behaviour and flag up our absurdities: Matt Haig's The Last Family in England is a case in point. Quirky, funny, and sometimes heart-tuggingly sad, this is the story of a contemporary family in crisis, told to us from the point of view of their faithful labrador, Prince, whose determination to resolve his family's problems, and fulfil his duty to them as man's best friend is both touching and amusing. You might also spot parallels with a certain well-known Shakespeare play (hint: there's a clue in the narrator's name ...).
Another recent novel that focusses on a dog's life is Tim Willocks's Doglands, a Call of the Wild update set in the world of greyhound racing. Furgul is a mongrel, potentially an outcast in a world of thoroughbreds: as his mother tells him, ‘you’ll be a big dog, but you won’t be the biggest. You’ll be strong, but you won’t be the strongest. You’ll be fast, but you won’t be the fastest. That’s why you’ll have to be the bravest.’ The story of Furgul's quest to escape his destiny and discover the world beyond the kennels is gripping and powerful, and those familiar with Willocks's other novels - such as Green River Rising or The Religion - won't be disappointed by this, his first novel for young adults. Another unusual take on a dog's point of view is Jonathan Crown's Sirius, in which a fox terrier Forrest Gump witnesses (and almost foils) Hitler's rise to power.
Finally, some non-fiction: novels that adopt an animal's perspective rely on the fundamental assumption that animals possess consciousness and feelings. Whether or not this may indeed by the case when it comes to marine biology is the subject of Victoria Braithwaite's Do Fish Feel Pain? a fascinating account of research into the cognitive powers of fish, and the ethical implications of such research. You'll definitely think twice before opening a can of tuna again ...
For more suggestions, try this list of books about intelligent animals or our reading list of books about animals.
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