Dogs of the Deadlands: SHORTLISTED FOR THE WEEK JUNIOR BOOK AWARDS

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Twelve-year-old Lily has lived with her emotionally distant oncologist stepfather and a succession of nannies since her mother died in a car accident two years ago. Nannies leave because of the difficulty of caring for Adam, Lily’s severely autistic 4-year-old half brother. The newest, Suzanne, seems promising, but Lily is tired of feeling like a planet orbiting the sun Adam. When she meets blind Zoe, who will attend the same private middle school as Lily in the fall, Lily’s happy to have a friend. However, Zoe’s take on the plight of the captive dolphin, Nori, used in Adam’s therapy opens Lily’s eyes. She knows she must use her influence over her stepfather, who is consulting on Nori’s treatment for cancer (caused by an oil spill), to free the animal. Lily’s got several fine lines to walk, as she works to hold onto her new friend, convince her stepfather of the rightness of releasing Nori, and do what’s best for Adam. In her newest exploration of animal-human relationships, Rorby’s lonely, mature heroine faces tough but realistic situations. Siblings of children on the spectrum will identify with Lily. If the tale flirts with sentimentality and some of the characters are strident in their views, the whole never feels maudlin or didactic.

Dogs of the Deadlands – Books For Keeps Dogs of the Deadlands – Books For Keeps

Natasha’s life is emotionally blighted by this loss, as we see in chapters interspersed with the heart of the story which is of how Zoya survives in this fierce, cold and terrifying landscape where it is not just predators she has to fear. She makes it in the wild, mating with a wolf and raising two cubs, Misha and the radiation damaged Bratan and when she is finally killed in a battle with a lynx the story becomes theirs. Is dolphin-assisted therapy so beneficial to patients that it’s worth keeping a wild dolphin captive? As with any great animal story, there is a degree of anthropomorphism, as it’s hard not to see the dogs’ personalities through human characteristics but the wild behaviour of the animals is not sugar-coated though and comes across as very realistically animal in nature.

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Ian Goldin Age of the City: Why our Future will be Won or Lost Together Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room 12:00pm Sun 2 Sunday, 2 April 2023 See this event Every literary festival stays in an author’s mind for slightly individual reasons. I shall remember the Oxford festival for: This gripping and unusual tale imagines how life might have evolved for the domestic animals forced to become wild in the aftermath of the Chernobyl disaster and the repercussions for their owners. This is NOT a fluffy dog story full of cuteness. This is brutal, dark and dog-eat-dog... so to speak. The answer to all these questions can be found in Anthony McGowan’s spellbinding novel, Dogs of the Deadlands. The award-winning author weaves a tale that is bound to tug at your heartstrings right from the beginning. His writing style is vivid and has a lyrical lilt to it. Each and every word seems to speak to you and make you feel like a character of the story. I was indeed moved by the intense descriptions of hunger and loss, love and loyalty. The travails of the animals, their desperate attempt to quench hunger, the fight to stay alive, and the intense battles with dangerous predators like lynxes, bears, and wolves keep you on the edge throughout the story. Add to that, a dash of romance, a pinch of deep friendships, and sacrificial familial loyalty, and you have yourself a winner. The beautiful sketches by Keith Robinson enliven the story even more.

Dogs of the Deadlands by Anthony McGowan | Goodreads Dogs of the Deadlands by Anthony McGowan | Goodreads

Leo Timmers and Fiona Ross Elephant Island Lincoln College: Oakeshott Room 4:00pm Sun 2 Sunday, 2 April 2023 See this event

I loved the whole atmosphere of the Oxford Literary Festival. From breakfast, alongside some of the attendees, who were talking books with each other a mile a minute, to the public event at The Sheldonian where everyone was lively and engaged – I felt I had arrived in a kind of literary heaven. Robin Stevens Ministry of Unladylike Activity Sheldonian Theatre 12:00pm Sun 2 Sunday, 2 April 2023 See this event

Dogs of the Deadlands Keith Robinson Illustration - Dogs of the Deadlands

I'm hoping McGowan has a comic or light-hearted book lined up for us next, I'm sure he needs it as much as we do! A dog’s eye perspective that’s so vivid you can almost taste the earthworms.’ FT, YA Book of the Year The Oxford festival is the most elegant and atmospheric of literary festivals. It’s a pleasure to both attend and perform there. McGowan never lets up in the trauma either. Once one foe is dealt with, another soon comes upon our dogs. Your heart isn't allowed to relax, and the scenes of animal violence can be quite graphic at times.

A reader said this book was "both savage and beautiful" and I agree. The author also said this is Call of the Wild meets Watership Down meets War and Peace — and "if it doesn’t frighten and excite you, and eventually make you cry, then I've failed." Dogs are a man’s best friend. However, what happens when there are no men available for a dog to befriend? Do they survive and if they do then how? Conversely, what happens to a person who is compelled to lose their dog, their best friend? Lara Feigel and Tessa Hadley Look! We Have Come Through! Living With D H Lawrence Weston Lecture Theatre 2:00pm Sun 2 Sunday, 2 April 2023 See this event

Dogs of the Deadlands: SHORTLISTED FOR THE WEEK JUNIOR BOOK

Although parts of the novel follow Natasha as she grows up and examines how the loss of her pup changes her as she gradually loses hope, the bulk of the action takes place away from humans. We're given brief insights into how Zoya survived those early days but this is really Misha's story, beginning when he and his malformed brother, Bratan are the only survivors of their litter. Anthony McGowan never patronises his young readers with long explanations or heavy information, with this being a subtle but powerful indication of the birth defects and neonatal deaths caused by radiation poisoning. As the pups grow they experience important life lessons and the dramatic scenes of peril are complemented by the day-to-day pressures of finding enough food to survive. There is humour to be found here too, with their first savoury soup meal sure to amuse and disgust in equal measure! Growing up in the shadow of the ruined nuclear power plant, pups Misha and Bratan need to learn how to live wild - and fast. Creatures with sharp teeth, scythe-like claws and yellow eyes lurk in the overgrown woods. And they’re watching the brothers…

Emily Thomas The Meaning of Travel: Philosophers Abroad Oxford Martin School: Seminar Room 4:00pm Sun 2 Sunday, 2 April 2023 See this event