An Old Favorite: Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight

An Old Favorite is a (completely random) meme here on eclectic / eccentric in which I feature some of my favorite reads from pre-blogging or early blogging days. I want to do this, not just to highlight some awesome books but also to explore how my memory stands up to the original review. One of my complaints regarding my reading is the serious lack of retention. Sometimes I read books, and within days, I have forgotten entire pieces of the literary puzzle. If you are interested in participating, feel free to leave a link to your post in the comments section.

On 24 January 2007, I posted the following regarding Alexandra Fuller's Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight:

The turmoil of Fuller's family life is sadly mirrored in the turmoil that rages through her family's corner of Africa. The familial oddities are no more excruciating to read than the political horrors that grow as Rhodesia becomes Zimbabwe and whites and blacks attempt to co-exist. The mother is an alcoholic, an undiagnosed manic-depressive. The father is unbelievably absent as he fights with other white men for a white Rhodesia. When the father is around, he is casually baiting armed officials, telling them to shoot him and his family or to let them go, but to be quick about it either way.

The first page of the book shows a picture of the author loading a gun; she is about 7. No matter where her family moves, Alexandra (known as Bobo) is in danger. In 1969, the family lived in England, "but it was unthinkable to either of [the] parents to continue living in such ordinarily lower-middle-class circumstances." Why? Why was it better to live in poverty, in war, in disease, in danger, in Africa? What sort of parents continually place their children in danger like this?

While each member of the family has his/her own idiosyncrasies that are highly disturbing or destructive, Fuller manages to still convey to the reader the love she has for her family.

Buy  |  Borrow  |  Accept  |  Avoid

Read December 2006
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I have very fond memories of reading this for the first time as it was a very new experience for me. I had never read a book set in Africa before - or at least I had never read a book set there that also dealt with political issues in Africa. It is also the first book which I recommended so specifically...let me explain. Most of the time I recommend books I think others would like, but the recommendation is relatively generic. With this book, however, I was able to find a person who was particularly suited to this story: Amy of Amy Reads. When I met her and found out she was very interested in reading books about Africa, I had a perfect book to recommend. That sort of specificity very rarely happens to me in recommending books. I sent it off to her, and she ended up enjoying the book and writing one of her awesome reviews.

This book works not only for those who enjoy stories set in Africa, but also for those who enjoy personal memoirs. Even all this time later - five years - I still remember this story fondly.