Dog People

Dog People, Cris Mazza, Coffee House Press, 1997

This is anovel about two married couples who have lost the ability to communicate with each other, except through their dogs.

Scott, a rather wimpy caterer, sees that his crumbling marriage to Suzanne is near the point of collapse. He falls for Fanny, who trained as an industrial designer but never really went anywhere with it, one of his part-time waitresses. She is married to Morgan, a whiny dancer in his mid-30s who is obsessed with Renee, a lesbian member of the same dance company as Morgan, a person who is determined to get what she wants, no matter what. What started as training their dogs together in the park turns into an affair between Fanny and Scott. Also, the dogs in this story are not Lassie. They're the type that attack and bite.

This certainly is an uncompromising look at people who each fit the definition of idiot. One also learns a lot about the breeding and training of dogs. Mazza says a lot about the similarities between members of the animal and human kingdoms. Very much worth reading.