A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World: A Novel

I often don't find time to read enough anymore. But I MADE time to read this one. It's going to be my favorite book of this year - 2024. It takes you right along on a post apocalyptic, hauntingly scary, but also extremely interesting journey with Griz to find the beloved Jess. It makes you think. It makes you wonder about things. It makes you see society and all its material accoutrements from a new perspective. It makes you feel. A memorable read!

When he was 13, Charlie Wilson’s (of Charlie Wilson’s war fame) neighbor killed his dog. Wilson retaliated first by setting his garden on fire, then by driving enough voters to the polls next election to get his neighbor kicked off the city council. The protagonist, main character, and narrator of A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World is Griz. Griz, like Charlie Wilson, knows that a man messing with your dog can call for extreme measures.Griz lives at the end of the world. An event occurred that nobody really understands—the “Gelding”—and the vast majority of human beings were no longer able to have children. With only a tiny, tiny percentage (like 0.0001 percent tiny) of people still able to have children, the population of the Earth dropped off a cliff. The story takes place a few generations after. So Griz can say that, “In my whole life, I haven’t met enough people to make up two teams for a game of football.” He estimates there are maybe 10,000 people left alive on the Earth. But this isn’t one of those fiery apocalypses. Griz and his family are able to live a nice life on some islands off of Great Britain, only maintaining regular contact with one other family. But the excitement of a visiting traveler who comes bearing stories and offers of trade ends in misery when the traveler poisons Griz’s family and steals his dog.“There may be no law left except what you make it, but if you steal my dog, you can at least expect me to come after you.”There is a lot to like here. This is a great dog book. The emotional beats and oh so rare human interactions are poignant and rich. Literary merit notwithstanding, Fletcher’s story is never boring. I particularly loved this particular post-apocalyptic world. What would happen if we just . . . disappeared? That isn’t quite what happened here. The “Busters” had a long time to live with the knowledge that they wouldn’t leave much behind. They reacted in different ways, but some took steps to prepare for a world empty of people as best they could. So the world sits empty, but nature is in constant movement.“Nature will take a building down if you give it enough time. The rain gets in, the cold turns water to ice in the winter, the ice swells the building cracks and then seeds sprout in the cracks in the spring and all you have to do is wait for the roots to push the walls and the roofs further apart to let in more seeds and rain and ice and eventually things fall apart just as surely here on the mainland as out of the islands.”I love this. It’s so different from what I’m used to, but Fletcher takes such great care with it. Griz has a lot of knowledge, although he and his family are always engaging in what he calls “Liebowitzing,” trying to save knowledge, looking for practical books that may save them. Griz, though, likes the books with stories in them. Although to Griz a crowd of people is just as fantastical as a dragon. All those stories give Griz a lot of knowledge, but Griz will learn that seeing something isn’t the same as reading about it.Griz narrates the story. It is structured as Griz’s journal entries, talking to the person in a photograph he found. Because Griz is in the future, talking about the past, Fletcher is free to drop little bits of foreshadowing. These can enhance a story. In fact, I would like to see more of this. The rise of 3rd-person limited POVs in SF means you rarely see it these days. But here lies my one really issue with the book. Fletcher leans too hard on this storytelling tool, and in general leans too hard on our emotions. I wound up walking away thinking Fletcher set out to tell a certain kind of story but wasn’t willing to commit to it. It wound up a serious mar on a story I otherwise loved. Less would have gone further.

I'm so glad I purchased this book instead of borrowing it from the library because now I need to re-read it after getting to the end and discovering the secrets!! The book was a great read from beginning to end, fantastic characters and plot twists. I was glad it was so long because I never wanted it to end. Highly recommend. Trigger warning for animal cruelty but fret not all animals end up alive and well.

I came across this book as a suggestion by Kindle. I've purchased other books that were suggested to me in this manner and came away, usually, very disappointed. C.A. Fletcher is now on my "favorites" list of authors to keep going back to, which is a relief for me because I find past, well-loved authors on my list have disappointed time and again with mediocre, current writings. Most have been removed from my list. For me, Mr. Fletcher is a new find. It's encouraging to find that there are some "new" authors out there who actually not only know how to write, but write extremely well.When I review a book, I do not waste my time by rewriting the storyline of the book. That's already been done not only by the publishers, but also by other "reviewers." I don't understand why reviewers feel the need to do this, but I guess I don't need to.This book grabs you from the beginning and is based on a very possible future for humanity. There was not one character in the book that I felt was not needed to make this book what it is. The author makes you feel what the characters feel, while leaving room for you to add your own imagination to the storyline.You see that I do not explain the gist of the book or its characters because it is up to you, the reader, to figure them out for yourselves. I'm saying that if you want a book that is finely written, has characters you can relate to, situations that enthrall you and an ending that does not disappoint, then you will want to buy and read it for yourself.Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm ready to start another book by Mr. Fletcher, which is written under the name Charlie Fletcher, as the author of children's books. Some of the finest books I've read have been written for children.With all sincerity, Mr. Fletcher, I hope that there is a sequel to A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World. I thank you for giving me great enjoyment and pleasure with this fine book. JO

Great story about a post human world where not all things are bad. Some great twists and the fear of the unknown as the adventure unfolds is the greatest part.

The book is great, has good suspense, action and plot reveals to make you want to read and read until you see the book ended.I was fully engaged by this book, i felt the plot was awsome on tis own and even if the world creating wasnt big, it did seem to fit the narrative. I did predict some of the plot afther 50% of the kindle but that did not stop me from loving the book, i recomend it to everyone.

The story has a good pace which never makes it boring up to the very end.

I absolutely loved this book, from beginning to end, and I had to force myself to put it down every time I had to. I found it by chance and it ended up being the best story I've read in a long time. The love for the dogs shown along the lines, and the way they're the central part of the story got to me very deeply since my dog is my family too.

GENIAL