The Dog Stars

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

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.

As good as it gets!

While I do not go out of my way to purchase post-apocalyptic novels, I do read them on occasion. This book was totally amazing, and I plan on listening it again very soon. It has been a very unique experience.

The narrator was perfection in every way and deserves some sort of award for the great job he did of capturing the spirit of the main character and the others. His voices were superb and were consistent throughout the book.

The story was vivid and imaginative. I could picture everything as described by the main character in his simple, beautiful language. Peter Heller can really write! I did not want to miss a sentence of this story.

This book has it all! It brought me to tears and it made me chuckle out loud. It had many surprises with both excitement and quiet times, where the main character revealed his deepest felt inner thoughts. Additionally, it had a very satisfying ending, for which I was grateful.

Very highly recommended. I am going to search out more books by Peter Heller in the future.

Put This One In Your Cart!

A quiet and powerful story about survival, isolation, memories,and new relationships. This novel is both subtle, as well as violent, gripping, and suspenseful. There is a slice of life within the book that details the connection between a man and his dog that is very well done. This novel is not one that I would usually choose, but I trusted the reader reviews, and it paid off.

Five stars for the first half, zero for the second

This could have been such a good book. The setup of the post apocalyptic world, characters and challenges had me glued to the speakers. But then, the second half completely fell apart. It becomes a slow moving, angsty yarn that spends far too much time dwelling on sex scenes more awkward than high school dates. Like, seriously, three hours of buildup. Those sections could have been cut completely.

My suggestion: listen to part one and then fast forward to the second to last chapter.

I loved,loved,loved this book...wanted more

Any additional comments?

I hope this writer does a second book . The words was like poetry. It is a great listen and left me wanting more. Worth while buying BIG TIME. I can't wait to listen to it again in the near future.

Fun leap into the apocalypse

This book held my attention and put me right there at the airfield with the protagonist, though it did drag in a few spots and spawn a love interest that seemed to have no place in this kind of story other than to give this tale a bit of happy for those that need that sort of thing.
Other than that, it was a fun read.