The Dog King

The Human Division, Episode 7

By: John Scalzi

Narrated by: William Dufris

Length: 58 mins

Publisher's summary

CDF Lieutenant Harry Wilson has one simple task: Watch an ambassador’s dog while the diplomat is conducting sensitive negotiations with an alien race. But you know dogs - always getting into something. And when this dog gets into something that could launch an alien civil war, Wilson has to find a way to solve the conflict, fast, or be the one in the Colonial Union’s doghouse.

"The Dog King" is a tale from John Scalzi's The Human Division, a series of self-contained but interrelated short stories set in the Old Man's War universe.

Listen to the complete edition of The Human Division, the fifth full-length book by John Scalzi in the Old Man's War universe.

©2012 John Scalzi (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

Light, Witty and Fun

Another solid episode in Scalzi's "The Human Division" ongoing series. This one was light, witty and funny, and a lot of fun. Definitely one of the most enjoyable episodes to date. Also good if you like dogs. :)

Very cute.

Narrator is as good as ever (very good). The story may be considered a bit too cute by some, but recent SF as a genre suffers from too many heavy messages IMHO. This one is not one of those.

Best Episode Yet!!!!

I really liked this episode.
A bit different than the rest, there are several funny points here, Wilson is a good character....

And c'mon, a title that says "the dog king" is interesting in a space theme book. What is really good in this series is how everyone keeps on pointing the blame and faluts toward Wilson.

Cheers

Enjoyed this one the most

I enjoyed the series more as I went through each episode. At first I struggled because it seemed like random stories set in this universe. But as it continued and I realized it was interwoven story lines I enjoyed them more. The main characters were enjoyable. It's pretty traditional sci fi fare but still worth the read.

See Review for "The B-Team"

See Review for "The B-Team" this is Episode 7 (minimum 15 words in a Review)

very enjoyable short read

john Scalzi's typical wry humor makes this yet another amusing bit if Harry Wilson eventful & always unorthodox. diplomatic career

sci-fi with humor

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

This story has a serious subject - peace in the universe- (or at least "lets have enough friends to scare off the enemies") - but the fate of a cute puppy could make or break diplomatic talks.

What did you like best about this story?

the real emotions and the fun elements.

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

I loved the narration. One man can get so many tones to make the storey seamless. I love it when one character is angry with another and I just forgot it was all being read by one person.

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

It takes a lot for a book to make me laugh or cry, but this one kept me interested and brought a smile once or twice.

Any additional comments?

Great series so far. I have my favourite characters but even the stories with a different focus keep me interested.

Typical "off the wall" Scalzi

Cute short story in the typical humor of Scalzi. I found it an enjoyable hour. Maybe not his best work but certainly worth the few cents it cost.

Like detective stories but not Sci Fi?

Reminds me of the short stories/novellas written in the mystery/whodunnit/Ellery Queen magazines. You don't need a sci fi background to enjoy this "who dunnit" (sort of). This series is going from strength to strength in a gentle. no challenging way. Well written

Entertaining from Beginning to End

This is a quick and thoroughly enjoyable short story in Scalzi’s Human Division series. The Colonial Union attempts to resolve a two-hundred-year-old civil war on an alien planet in an effort to boost their credibility against their larger alien enemies. As the diplomatic maneuverings come to a close, something strange happens to the ambassador’s dog threatening to throw everything that’s been accomplished out the window.

Frankly, there is nothing in this story that is even remotely surprising except perhaps the ultimate solution to the problem. The first crisis and the surprise are totally predictable—and yet, that only enriched my enjoyment of the tale. It’s nice to occasionally see the problem ahead of the hero and figure out the complication as well. Scalzi makes the diplomatic crisis have a humorous tone that kept me smiling from beginning to end