The Dog Stars

By: Peter Heller

Narrated by: Mark Deakins

Length: 10 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

A riveting, powerful novel about a pilot living in a world filled with loss - and what he is willing to risk to rediscover, against all odds, connection, love, and grace.

Hig survived the flu that killed everyone he knows. His wife is gone, his friends are dead, he lives in the hangar of a small abandoned airport with his dog, his only neighbor a gun-toting misanthrope. In his 1956 Cessna, Hig flies the perimeter of the airfield or sneaks off to the mountains to fish and to pretend that things are the way they used to be. But when a random transmission somehow beams through his radio, the voice ignites a hope deep inside him that a better life - something like his old life - exists beyond the airport.

Risking everything, he flies past his point of no return - not enough fuel to get him home - following the trail of the static-broken voice on the radio. But what he encounters and what he must face - in the people he meets, and in himself - is both better and worse than anything he could have hoped for.

Narrated by a man who is part warrior and part dreamer, a hunter with a great shot and a heart that refuses to harden, The Dog Stars is both savagely funny and achingly sad, a breathtaking story about what it means to be human.

©2012 Peter Heller (P)2012 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Richly evocative yet streamlined journal entries propel the high-stakes plot while simultaneously illuminating Hig's nuanced states of mind as isolation and constant vigilance exact their toll, along with his sorrow for the dying world.... Heller's surprising and irresistible blend of suspense, romance, social insight, and humor creates a cunning form of cognitive dissonance neatly pegged by Hig as an apocalyptic parody of Norman Rockwell...a novel, that is, of spiky pleasure and signal resonance." ( Booklist)

"In the tradition of postapocalyptic literary fiction such as Cormac McCarthy's The Road and Jim Crace's The Pesthouse, this hypervisceral first novel by adventure writer Heller ( Kook) takes place nine years after a superflu has killed off much of mankind.... With its evocative descriptions of hunting, fishing, and flying, this novel, perhaps the world's most poetic survival guide, reads as if Billy Collins had novelized one of George Romero's zombie flicks. From start to finish, Heller carries the reader aloft on graceful prose, intense action, and deeply felt emotion." ( Publishers Weekly)

"Leave it to Peter Heller to imagine a post-apocalyptic world that contains as much loveliness as it does devastation. His likable hero, Hig, flies around what was once Colorado in his 1956 Cessna, chasing all the same things we chase in these pre-annihilation days: love, friendship, the solace of the natural world, the chance to perform some small kindness, and a good dog for a co-pilot. The Dog Stars is a wholly compelling and deeply engaging debut." (Pam Houston, author of Contents May Have Shifted)

A fresh look on a post-apocolyptic story

Would you listen to The Dog Stars again? Why?

Yes. This story was well told and had just the right amount of character development to draw you in and feel connected. I really enjoy the dynamic relationship between the main characters. Many post-apocalyptic stories are cookie cutter stories that can become indistinguishable from each other. The setting of this story adds a new twist to an old tale.

Which character – as performed by Mark Deakins – was your favorite?

Mark Deakin's reading and interpretation of the story was fantastic. If I had to pick a favorite character based on Mark's performance, I would say Bangley. He made the character come to life and the voice he chose to use seemed very appropriate. However, the best character in the book was not a person but the relationship that grew between Higg and Bangley.

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I really connected with Higg. His struggle to maintain his sanity and humanity in such a desolate and depressing environment touched me. The emotion attached to this story is precisely what I look for in a good book. I want to feel the character's sorrow, anger, and happiness. I want to connect with them and root for them. This story did this well.

A gentle man caught in a violent world.

What did you love best about The Dog Stars?

The main character trying to always related to the "past" which is today's present. Making the reader see that tomorrow may not be as we planned.

Have you listened to any of Mark Deakins’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

Have not. Will though

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Enjoy today, because tomorrow you may want it all back.

Apocalyptic, but worth it.

Apocalyptic stories are not really my style ( I asked for a refund real quickly for xxxxx), but this story was wonderful . I have to admit that there is a real dog central to the story, for which I am often a sucker for. Anyhow, it is done well. Other reviewers are more articulate about writing style (sparse, but great) and plot development. I was swept away.
Highly recommended.

One of the Best Apocalyptic Fictions I've Read

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I heard this audiobook before I looked at the book (a sample from Kindle). I decided to go back and listen to the book again rather than read it. The style seemed fit an audio presentation better than the written word, or maybe the narrator was just particularly well chosen for a first person narrative by a man whose world fell apart.

The story evolves slowly, with the man's thoughts looping back and forth in time. It's a bit philosophical, but not too much. It's a bit poetic, but not too much. It really did come across as a man, with way too much downtime, trying to make sense of the world. Despite the meanderings, the plot is easy to follow since there are so few characters and the man is so darn believable. Also, I was hesitant about ordering this audio book because of the "dog" aspects, fearing the common anthropomorphic portrayals in many "dog books". The Dog Stars is not one of those books. It's the story of a real, believable man with his real, believable dog. And very little else.

I would recommend this book to thinking people who are already along their paths or at least ready to begin their paths toward coming to terms with an environment like the one presented in this book. There are no zombies in this book, no miraculous psychic capabilities, no heavenly intervention. Just food for thought via a darn good story.

What other book might you compare The Dog Stars to and why?

Although there is no dog in "Alas, Babylon" by Pat Frank, both books are apocalyptic classics and share the same still, real, deep sense of the humanity of the characters. In both books, everything has been stripped away from the main characters but the deepest, simplest, best of their human-ness.

Which scene was your favorite?

Up in the mountains, the dog telling the man, in the way only a dog can, when it was "time to go".

So good

Would you listen to The Dog Stars again? Why?

The story was so, so good. I cried a lot but that's okay. The narrator did a perfect job.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Dog Stars?

Jake!!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

YES

couldn't put it down.

great story, great writing and a great narrator. I could not out this one down and hinged through it.

In the mountains, in the rainy night...

One of the things I have been doing in my career of late is producing and narrating books for Audible. There are those of us who sometimes gather (via zoom, of course) to talk about all things voiceover, but mostly books: our approaches, our likes, our connections, our tips. One of my fellow producers recommended this book as a paragon for us readers to realize the beauty of the silences, and the luxury of understated words. I had heard of, and probably read, a Peter Heller novel somewhere along my road. I like post-apocalyptic stories, as long as they're grounded in reality. I took his advice, and downloaded The Dog Stars. As the audiobook began, I felt cheated. And judgy. The read was far too sparse. The characterization almost meek. I let it ride. I'm glad I did. Narrator Mark Deakins and his team made decisions about the interpretation and performance that I would not have, and that's probably why I was so riveted to the story, and the performance. I learned a bunch by listening to it. It was a quiet, uncomplicated and completive read, which allowed the story to form in my head as the intelligent listener. Its steady pace, and Mark's unwavering commitment to Hig's character, was a lesson for anyone who reads books out loud for a living. This was an excellent read of a wonderful story. This is a worthy listen (read) for anyone who loves the wilderness, dogs, the hunt, fish, the beauty of the mountain, and the lasting power of love that binds anyone to anyone else, regardless of how it's defined, or to what lengths we will go to treasure it.

the dog stars

excellent listen. unusual take on the end of the world as we know it. narrator was easy to listen too.

Word crafting at its best

I rarely give a book five stars all across. I am a very picky reader and don't find many books written this well. The prose is outstanding. The words the author used to describe the relationship the main character had with his dog were magnificent. Later in the book a man meets woman scene of sexual attraction was the best writing I have read creating palpable melding of tension, bliss and satisfaction. The plot has twists and turns and works well in keeping ones attention.

another Peter Heller masterpiece. Great narration

I loved this book. You won't be disappointed in this read. Great plot and awesome ending