Dog On It (private eyes, dogs)

Book Title: Dog On It by Spencer Quinn

Topic: private eyes, dogs,

Thoughts:  Dogs truly are smarter than humans.  Chet, a dog, works with Bernie, a private investigator, to solve crimes.  Bernie didn't make the police force, is divorced, and doesn't have much money.  Chet is a dog I would love to have.  He doesn't need a leash, obeys Bernie, and can think on his own in difficult situations.  I hope I am never in the situation that Bernie is in, but I know my dog I have now would not try to save my life.

Even though Chet would be considered an innocent eye narrator, he puts the pieces together before Bernie does on solving the case.  We do not hear all the conversations Bernie has because Chet gets sidetracked easily (water, toy, squirrel, smells, etc.).  Think of the dog in Up who talks but then as soon as he sees a squirrel, he lets us know. Chet is the same way. I have to smile because my son did the same thing on our drive home yesterday.  He was telling me a story, and in the middle he yells out "SQUIRREL" and then continues his story.  Are we to too similar to other animals?

While this is a mystery, we are not waiting until the last couple of chapters to figure out who the bad guy is.  Chet helps us put the pieces together quite easily, but we are left to wonder how fast his master, who Chet keeps calling "smart", will figure it out.  I kept wanting him to be able to "talk" to Bernie like the Bush's Baked Beans dog, but that would not make this novel as realistic.

Chet hints at his background of why he flunked out of the police academy. While this is not as emotional as A Dog's Purpose, I am looking forward to the next Chet and Bernie Mystery to find out more about Chet's background and see how Chet on the case helps solve the crime before his human counterparts.