Dog Logic
Tom Strelich
Black Rose Writing (2025)
ISBN: 978-1685136079
Reviewed by Justin Gaynor for Reader Views
The 1976 sci-fi cult film The Man Who Fell to Earth starred professional oddball David Bowie as an emissary from another planet. Tom Strelich gives us something similar, except in the case of “Dog Logic” the messenger from another civilization drives a Mister Softie ice cream truck. He also blends into his social landscape – the countryside just outside Bakersfield, California – far better than Bowie managed. And while Bowie’s character comes from another planet, Mister Softie is more of a time traveler. But not exactly. You’ll see.
If you’re an adult in the United States and you’re having problems, there are many places you can turn for help. If your stomach hurts, you can go to the hospital. If you need to know how much the University of North Dakota spent on hoof-and-mouth disease outreach in 1957, your local librarian can probably help. This is all well and good, but what about people who insist on helping you when you really don’t need it? That’s one of the major themes running through this novel, and the other is our obsession with finding fresh content for our social media feeds.
That may sound grim, but Strelich is a light-footed storyteller and this book had me laughing throughout. I have never before read of a character with “bejeweled horned rim glasses straight out of a Gary Larsen cartoon,” but I could picture the character perfectly after reading that. Another character has eyes “that always reminded him of Junior Mints.” I also appreciate a story set in California that doesn’t feel L.A.-noirish or Bay Area hip. Like the residents of Bakersfield itself, this is a down-to-earth unpretentious novel that gets the job done.
Strelich seems fed up with a long list of modern ills, including movie-star political ads, miracle home gyms advertised on TV, government overreach, tech phone support, etc. On the positive side, we find honesty and music, particularly when sung by a choir:
He would always marvel at the transformation when the choir would cease to be people and would become…he wasn’t sure what. They’d be talking and normal one moment, getting pointers in phrasing, timing, expression and so on from Darlene the choir director, and then they’d start singing, and they’d become this whole other thing separate and distinct from the people who comprised it. (p.365)
It’s hard to disagree with this, actually. He has had many professional wrestlers in his family, which makes a certain kind of sense, given the focus on entertainment at any cost in this book.
Hertell Daggett, the main character, is a former scientist who was struck in the head by a falling bullet fired into the air during a New Year’s Eve celebration. It’s a cruel fate to befall a scientist, as his memory goes haywire and he’s always hearing distant hums and voices while tending the L’il Pal Pet Cemetery where he now spends his time. A set of unusual events is misinterpreted by local law enforcement as evidence of an illegal meth factory, and in breathtaking fashion Strelich tells the story from two different points of view, one of which is right and one of which is tragically misguided. The fact that his ex-wife, who left him as his mind deteriorated, is now a deputy doesn’t help matters.
This sets into motion a set of events that are…unexpected. And complex. And which inevitably bring out the YouTubers and Instagrammers and news reporters and people from the government who are, of course, Here to Help. Somehow, bouncing from event to event with the inexorable logic of a Rube Goldberg device, Strelich keeps things moving, keeps them amusing, and even creates a feeling a little like justice in “Dog Logic.” It’s a pity David Bowie isn’t around to read this one – I suspect he’d be highly amused.