Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Jun 2014
368 pages
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publication Information
All Dylan Mint has ever wanted is to keep his Tourette's in check and live life as a "normal" teenager. The swearing, the tics, the howling "dog" that escapes when things are at their worst - nothing about Tourette's makes it easy to meet cute girls or have normal friends (or many friends at all). But a routine hospital visit changes everything - Dylan overhears that he's going to die. In an attempt to claim the life he's always wanted, he decides to grant himself parting wishes, or "Cool Things To Do Before I Cack It". In an intimate portrayal of life with Tourette's, Dylan's journey to come to terms with the disorder that has defined his life and his preconceptions about the world around him is hilarious, painful and, ultimately, utterly masterful.
"Though the story occasionally goes astray amid a meandering plot and dialogue that takes effort to unpack, Conaghan, who has Tourette's himself, does an excellent job of portraying his unconventional and memorable protagonist. Grade 10 and up." - Publishers Weekly
"If they can get past the challenging language, they will be rewarded with a relatable character who has many of the same problems they do." - School Library Journal
"This is a portrayal of young male bonding, complete with all the lively banter of true camaraderie, at its most tender and affectionate." - Irish Times
This information about When Mr. Dog Bites was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Brian Conaghan lives and works as a teacher in Dublin and has a degree in Creative Writing from the University of Glasgow. When Mr. Dog Bites is his debut American novel.
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