Animal Lovers' Book of Beastly Murder

From Publishers Weekly
Grisly and atmospheric, these are perfectly nasty little tales told by an acknowledged mistress of the form ( Little Tales of Mysogyny. Whether it's Eddie, the Capuchin monkey, annoyed at the petty thief who employs him, or Djemal, the camel, getting back at a cruel driver, Highsmith's creatures are intelligent, vengeful and bloodthirsty. Even the aged Baron, a pampered and sophisticated city dog with worn-down teeth, finds a way of settling the score with the human he dislikes. Tales are told of a truffle-hunting pig, a ferret, a goat who gives rides in an amusement park, a sleek Siamese cat, chickens raised on an automated farm and an extended family of hamstersall sympathetically, but never sentimentally, portrayed. The stories feature small worlds of animal amorality in which the sweet taste of revenge leaves no aftertaste of guilt. It's a rich offering, best sampled in small bites. Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.


Joan Smith, Los Angeles Times
[Highsmith] is no more a practitioner of the murder mystery genre than are Dostoevsky, Faulkner and Camus.


Book Description
Following the national bestseller Selected Stories, this fall brings the republication of a gripping Highsmith classic. Stories from The Animal-Lover's Book of Beastly Murder portray, with incisive humor, the murderously competitive desires of our most trusted companions. In this satirical reprise of Kafka, cats, dogs, and the occasional cockroach are no longer benign elements of a happy home but actually have the power to destroy it.


About the Author
Patricia Highsmith is the author of Strangers on a Train and The Talented Mr. Ripley. She died in 1995 in Locarno, Switzerland.


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Grisly and atmospheric, these are perfectly nasty little tales told by an acknowledged mistress of the form ( Little Tales of Mysogyny. Whether it's Eddie, the Capuchin monkey, annoyed at the petty thief who employs him, or Djemal, the camel, getting back at a cruel driver, Highsmith's creatures are intelligent, vengeful and bloodthirsty. Even the aged Baron, a pampered and sophisticated city dog with worn-down teeth, finds a way of settling the score with the human he dislikes. Tales are told of a truffle-hunting pig, a ferret, a goat who gives rides in an amusement park, a sleek Siamese cat, chickens raised on an automated farm and an extended family of hamstersall sympathetically, but never sentimentally, portrayed. The stories feature small worlds of animal amorality in which the sweet taste of revenge leaves no aftertaste of guilt. It's a rich offering, best sampled in small bites. (November 5)


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