Rating: 
Summary: One of the best books I've read in years
Review: A beautifully well-crafted tale of loss. In exploring a relationship that has ended in tragedy, I found it brought to life both enormous joy and sorrow. A short read at 260 pages, I nevertheless had to put it aside several times because it was simply too much for me in a single sitting. While it occasionally had a twist that bordered on the absurd, those twists were so carefully crafted into the integrity of the story that I found them impossible not to embrace. I heartily recomend this book.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: I wish I had read the online reviews first (even though most of them are positive), because after reading many newspaper and literary reviews, I was under the impression that this book was completely different. I read it in one day, yet halfway through I found myself saying, "Is this ever going to get to GOOD?" I agree, many of the events in the book are highly disturbing: my stomach wrenched, my heart beat unsteadily. But at the end of the day, I was lead to believe (not only by the reviews I had read but also by the inside flap) that this book was somewhat of a dark comedy/thriller about a man's fascination with linguistics and his quest to teach his dog to speak (or communicate). I was prepared for a gripping scientific thriller filled with pages filled with his work and progress with the dog -- how maybe his hard work would come to some fruition. Instead I found a weepy, emotional, depressing account of the life Paul Iverson had with his emotially disturbed dead wife. Blah blah blah. Moreover, though Ms. Parkhurst is a talented writer, I do not believe she should have attempted to write this book from a man's point of view. At times it read too feminine, too dramatic, too emotional and too sensitive to be written from a male's first person perspective. By the end of the book, I felt exhausted and haunted by this tale -- and not in a good way.
P.S. Any dog lover will be horrified at some of the happenings in this book. Be prepared.
Rating:
Summary: Heartbreaking, honest prose.
Review: I read this book in one night--I couldn't put it down. It has got to be one of the most amazing books I've ever read (and I've read plenty). The overarching sadness and the search for answers to love and loss is captured in near perfect prose, and I sat in bed sobbing as I reached the end.The premise is beautiful and the writing clever and as magical as the masks the dead woman creates. Paul's grief and yearning is palpable. Lexy's emotional rollercoaster is frighteningly real. Some criticize the book's plot or turns as "unrealistic," but I find it's the near fairy tale quality of the story that enables the writer to convey the jagged truths and heartaches of the story. Lexy lives in a world of myths and legends, she grew up listening to horrifying children's tales. This book is a modern fairy tale, or as near to American Magical Realism as I've found--and isn't it in the nature of the fairy tale or the tales of Grimm to convey a lesson or moral through a magical ensemble of characters? Paul's search is for the truth of Lexy's death: was it an accident, or did she kill herself? What sense does either option make? What sense is he to make of the aftermath--the emptiness, the grief, the uncertainty of his world? Anyone who has watched a loved one suffering from depression, or from self-doubt, anyone who has lost a loved one and asked why? why? why? will find the book agonizing, but also strangely soothing. Can't we all identify on some level with the widower, alone in the darkness of an empty night, reaching out to a stranger and desparately seeking for answers to the haunting questions we are so often too frightened to utter?
Rating:
Summary: Not what it seems
Review: If you read the reviews of this book, you might be forgiven for thinking you'll get a laugh out of it. I mean, come on! A man trying to teach his dog to talk so the dog can tell him what really happened the day his wife died of a freak accident. Sounds more like a fairy tale, right? Wrong. It's a morality play, a story that probes the deepest recesses of grief, marriage, relationships, and all that lies beneath the surface of the ties that bind.
Don't miss this spectacular debut novel. In fact, buy a signed first edition; it'll be worth something 20 years from now.
Rating: 
Summary: Great lead characters!
Review: If you're expecting a story about a man trying to teach his dog how to talk, you've got another think coming. This is about a man grieving over his wife's death. Lexy Ransome had either jumped or fallen from the top of an apple tree and the only witness is her dog Lorelei. Paul Iverson, a professor of linguistics, sets out to teach her how to talk so she can tell him what really happened.
The two lead characters are extremely well drawn. Lexy is an artist who makes decorative masks for every occasion, including death masks. At one point in her life she shaved her head, had the dome tattoed with snakes and went to The Prom as the only bald-headed girl there. The Paul Iverson portrayal is impressive because of how well Parkhurst gets inside the head of a man (He is the narrator). His relationship with his first wife is especially true to life.
If you're thinking this is too much of a downer for you, don't let it bother you. Just when things get especially bleak, Parkhurst throws in a little comic relief. We see Iverson trying to teach Lorelei how to say "water" by hiding her water bowl. She's to smart for him; she drinks out of the toilet bowl.
Some parts of the novel are a bit far-fetched. During his research, Iverson finds a man who operated on dogs to make them more receptive to human speech. The man is doing prison time, but he's got a bunch of followers carrying on in his name. Iverson is so desperate to find out what happened to Lexy that he attends one of their meetings. Because Iverson is such a likable character we accept this. The book also works as a mystery, as Lexy leaves sprinkles of evidence lying about that Paul tries to decipher: she had cooked a steak just before she died, but there's no evidence she ate it; she had rearranged Paul's bookshelves; she had made a phone call to a psychic. All of this draws us further and further into the book, good to the very last bit.
Rating:
Summary: Good Book! Very Good Book!
Review: Carolyn Parkhurst's The Dogs of Babel is a wonderfully powerful novel. However, although drama abounds there are enough bits and peices of humor to keep this book from being depressing.
The Dogs of Babel centers around a man, distraught over the apparent suicide of his wife. The only witness to this horrible event was the family pet Lorelei. Being a linguist, Paul decides to attempt to his dog to communicate so that he can finally discover what really happened on the day of his wife's death.
Overall, this book is less about teaching a dog to do the impossible and more about a man trying to come to terms with the most ultimate pain imaginable. It's about overcoming grief and loss and in a little way, it's about life.
The only bad thing I have to say about this book is that somewhere past the halfway point the book strays from the premise it begins with and turns into a semi crime-drama for about 20 or 30 pages and finally returning back to the original mood of the book before the finale. However, it isn't a huge setback and doesn't disallow the book to be enjoyed.
All in all, this is a great book. Powerful and written at a fast-pace. It's a great summer read. FIVE STARS!!!
Rating:
Summary: Thoroughly entertaining summer read
Review: I picked up this book based on what a reviewer said on the CBS Sunday Morning program. Unlike others here, I did laugh while reading this book. Several times. Out loud. I guess the absurdity hit me more than for others. It is basically about a guy trying to deal with his sudden loss. He does it in an absurd way. I loved the way he pieced together what had happened. I'll admit in isn't that emotionally deep and the dog mutilation stuff is disturbing, but it's just fiction. The oddness of the book reminded me of "The World According To Garp" by John Irving, which is one of my all time favorite books.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating!
Review: I'm not really sure what to say about this book....interesting, intriguing, disturbing, sad, poignant, imaginative. After reading a passage toward the end of the book, I copied the two or three paragraphs and emailed it someone I know, the writing was so beautiful and the sentiment so true...(now I need to send them a copy of the whole book)!Anyway, this may not be for everyone, you really have to let your imagination run free, but I think it is a wonderful book.
Rating:
Summary: Disturbing, yet poignant
Review: At first, I wasn't sure if I'd like this novel, for the subject matter seemed somewhat brusque and, as a dog lover, said brusqueness didn't sit well with me. However, The Dogs of Babel, though disturbing, is one of the best reading investments I've made throughout the year. Paul returns home from work to find that Lexy, his wife, has had a fatal fall from their apple tree. Even though the police rules out the occurrence as an accident, Paul finds various inconsistencies that tell him that something more sinister happened. But the only witness is Lorelei, a female Rhodesian Ridgeback and Paul's saving grace. A linguistics professor, Paul is convinced that he can teach Lorelei how to talk. What transpires is a disarming story that floors the reader with its various twists... The novel has a mixture of darkness and poignancy. Lexy is a rather complex character and her eccentricity spoke to me. However, I agree with some of the reviewers that complain about the lack of voice in the novel. Sometimes Paul's narration is wooden and lacks depth - making it difficult to empathize with his grief. Perhaps the novel should have been written in third person narrative. But other than that, The Dogs of Babel is one of the most original novels out there. Though the subject matter might somewhat strong for some people. A warning to dog lovers: there are some passages in this novel that are rather disturbing. Make sure you can handle it.
Rating: 
Summary: the worst!
Review: i hated this book! i never write reviews, but i hated this so much i thought i'd warn you. it reminded me of cheesy danielle steele novels i would read when i was a teenager. the relationship with the couple in the book is far-fetched and the dog part is just as bad. don't get it, unless you are the danielle steele type. i am ashamed that this is one of the best selling books in our country.
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