This article originally appeared in British
Weekly.
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The Labrador Pact… Save the Family at All Cost SANTA MONICA, CA (British Weekly) 02/18/08 - In Matt Haig’s novel The Labrador Pact, we see the world through the eyes of Prince, a handsome Labrador dog. He can talk to other non-human animals. With humans he communicates by means of therapeutic tail-wagging. Labs have chosen to remember duty to their family rather than live for themselves. Prince knows that keeping the family together at all costs is the basis of the Labrador Pact, a pact that determines what Labradors are allowed to do and not do. |
The lives of Kate and Adam, and their children Charlotte and Hal, are headed for turmoil. Kate fears the truth will come out about who Charlotte’s real father is. Adam wants to have an affair. Charlotte wants to kill herself. And, Hal just wants to fit in. As disloyalty and betrayal engulf the family, Prince works frantically to save them. He’s thwarted by both humans and other dogs.
The Labrador Pact was first published in 2004 in Britain as The Last Family in England. The story was inspired by Shakespeare’s Henry IV. "Henry IV Part One is my favorite Shakespeare play and loosely inspired the sub-plot for The Last Family in England," says Matt Haig. "In the play, Prince Hal is caught between following his duty as the future King of England, represented by his father King Henry, and the world of mischief and hedonistic self-indulgence represented by Sir Jack Falstaff." In the novel, Prince faces a similar predicament, caught between his Labrador mentor Henry and the mischievous Springer spaniel Falstaff.
The idea that Labradors are special and hold the lives of people in their paws is an interesting premise. Unlike Disney’s 101 Dalmations, which shifts points of view, this story is always from Prince’s perspective. An opposing view seems needed to make it work. To hear what Adam Hunter thinks about all that’s going on would have fleshed out the story more. There’s no growth in the human character. They never take the hero’s journey, and that’s what the dog is there to help them do. And, the story is so negative. There is not one happy scene in the whole book. It’s a bit of a downer. Matt Haig’s writing style is simple to keep it in a dog’s voice.
The Labrador Pact is Matt Haig's debut novel. His second book, The Dead Fathers Club, was published in America first. His writing has appeared in The Guardian, the London Sunday Times, The Independent, and the Sydney Morning Herald. He lives in Leeds, England.
The Labrador Pact. Hardcover - Feb 28, 2008. Publisher: Viking Adult (February 28, 2008). Language: English. ISBN- 978-0670018529 $23.95