''Fifteen Dogs: An Apologue'' is a novel by

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

writer André Alexis. Published by

Coach House Books Coach House Books is an independent book publishing company located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Coach House publishes experimental poetry, fiction, drama and non-fiction. The press is particularly interested in writing that pushes at the boundar ...

in 2015, the novel was the winner of the 2015

Scotiabank Giller Prize The Giller Prize (sponsored as the Scotiabank Giller Prize), is a literary award given to a Canadian author of a novel or short story collection published in English (including translation) the previous year, after an annual juried competition be ...

Ian McGillis, "Andre Alexis wins Giller Prize for Fifteen Dogs". ''

Saskatoon Star-Phoenix ''The StarPhoenix'' is a daily newspaper that serves Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, and is a part of Postmedia Network. The ''StarPhoenix'' puts out six editions each week and publishes one weekly, ''Bridges''. It is also part of the canada.com ...

'', November 12, 2015. and the 2015

Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize The Atwood Gibson Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, formerly known as the Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize, is a Canadian literary award presented by the Writers' Trust of Canada after an annual juried competition of works submitted by publishers. A ...

,Deborah Dundas
"Andre Alexis wins Rogers Writers' Trust Fiction Prize"
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...

'', November 3, 2015. as well as the 2017 edition of ''

Canada Reads ''Canada Reads'' is an annual "battle of the books" competition organized and broadcast by Canada's public broadcaster, the CBC. The program has aired in two distinct editions, the English-language ''Canada Reads'' on CBC Radio One, and the Frenc ...

''. It is the second novel in a planned cycle of a five-novel

quincunx A quincunx () is a geometric pattern consisting of five points arranged in a cross, with four of them forming a square or rectangle and a fifth at its center. The same pattern has other names, including "in saltire" or "in cross" in heraldry (d ...

that Alexis will use to examine faith, place, love, power and hatred, the first being '' Pastoral'', which was published in 2014. An apologue, the novel tells the story of a group of 15 dogs, kennelled at a veterinary clinic in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the anch ...

, who are suddenly gifted by the gods with human

consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...

and

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...

.Safa Jinje
"Fifteen Dogs by André Alexis: Review"
''Toronto Star'', March 28, 2015.

Plot

Over drinks at Toronto's Wheat Sheaf Tavern,

Hermes Hermes (; grc-gre, wikt:Ἑρμῆς, Ἑρμῆς) is an Olympian deity in ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. Hermes is considered the herald of the gods. He is also considered the protector of human heralds, travelle ...

and

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label= Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label ...

get into a debate about whether animals could live happily if they had the same cognitive and speech abilities as humans."Alexis's Fifteen Dogs wins Scotiabank Giller Prize". ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of approximately 2 million in 2015, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on weekdays and Saturdays, although it ...

'', November 11, 2015. They decide to wager a year of servitude on the outcome of granting the gifts of human reasoning and language to a group of dogs in a nearby clinic. Given their newfound abilities, the dogs are able to escape the clinic and make their way to the city's

High Park High Park is a municipal park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. High Park is a mixed recreational and natural park, with sporting facilities, cultural facilities, educational facilities, gardens, playgrounds and a zoo. One-third of the park remains ...

, where they set up their own new protosociety. The novel then explores the functioning of their new society through the impact of human values, such as individuality and personal freedom, on the conventionally hierarchical social order of dog packs. Key characters in the canine society include Atticus, a

Neapolitan Mastiff The Neapolitan Mastiff or is an Italian breed of large dog of mastiff type. It descends from the traditional guard dogs of central Italy. It was recognised as a breed by the Ente Nazionale della Cinofilia Italiana in 1949, and accepted by the ...

who naturally emerges as the group leader; Majnoun, a black

poodle The Poodle, called the Pudel in German and the Caniche in French, is a breed of water dog. The breed is divided into four varieties based on size, the Standard Poodle, Medium Poodle, Miniature Poodle and Toy Poodle, although the Medium Poodle var ...

who is reluctant to trust other dogs; Frick and Frack, a pair of Labrador retrievers who are leery about their new reality; and Prince, a mutt who embraces his language skills to become a

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

Themes

Language

The dogs develop their own language, which creates conflict in the pack. Prince becomes a poet and his passion for language is a source of pleasure for him. Some dogs appreciate his use of poetry and wit, but other dogs find it strange and hate it. Majnoun learns to understand and speak English, which forges a bond between him and a human (Nira) as they have long conversations and learn about one another.

Death

The immortal gods Apollo and Hermes are fascinated with mortals on Earth because of their relationship with death. Throughout the book, the reader learns how each dog dies and whether or not the dog died happy. The death plots include murder and euthanasia. The death of humans is also part of the narrative along with how the dogs respond.

Poetry

The novel includes several poems composed by Prince. At the end, the author includes a "note on the text" where he describes the poetry genre used throughout the novel.

Love and friendship

Several dogs form friendships (Bella and Athena; Dougie and Benjy) that they experience differently because of their gift of intelligence. Majnoun asks Hermes about love and Prince loves language.

Awards and honors

It won the 2015

and the

, and was shortlisted for a

Toronto Book Award The Toronto Book Awards are Canadian literary awards, presented annually by the City of Toronto government The municipal government of Toronto ( incorporated as the City of Toronto) is the local government responsible for administering the city ...

Adaptations

A theatrical adaptation, written and directed by Marie Farsi, premiered at the Crow's Theatre in Toronto in January 2023.Glenn Sumi
"Fifteen Dogs has lots of woofing and barking – and insights into what it means to be human"
''

'', January 20, 2023.

References

{{Giller Prize 2015 Canadian novels Novels by André Alexis Scotiabank Giller Prize-winning works Novels set in Toronto Greek and Roman deities in fiction Novels about dogs Coach House Press books Canadian philosophical novels