Point of View

Bob narrates the novel in the present tense as if he is speaking in a confessional directly to the reader. From the beginning, Bob directly addresses the reader: “Lemme tell you about being man’s best friend” (15). He uses a casual and informal tone that makes the reader feel as if he is being spoken to by a close friend.

Because Bob is the narrator, everything that we access as readers is filtered through his perspective. Bob is exceptionally clever and has a way with words. In the world of the novel, all dogs can understand human language: “Dogs understand more than you might think. The nature channel says we’re about as smart as the average human toddler. Two-year-olds, my fuzzy rump! We’re a million times brainier than some babbling rug rat” (70). However, Bob admits that some dogs understand more than others, and...