The Dog Allusion: Gods, Pets and How to be Human

Martin Rowson

Sep 2010 · Random House

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'As with dogs, so with gods - by and large, you should blame the owners.'

A particular trait, common to all human civilisations, is the worship of non-human entities with followings of devotees who claim that their reverence can transport them to transcendental heights of complete and unfettered love.

Do we mean God? No - we mean Dog. Dogs and other pets we've been keeping and loving since we began walking on two feet. But why do we love God - and pets - so much when their capriciousness sometimes suggests that they don't love us back?

In this wise, witty and highly topical book, celebrated cartoonist and novelist Martin Rowson argues that rationally, the whole enterprise of religion is a monumental and faintly ridiculous waste of time and money. But then again, so is pet-keeping.

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Martin Rowson is an award-winning political cartoonist whose work appears regularly in the Guardian, The Times, the Independent on Sunday, the Daily Mirror, the Scotsman, the Spectator, Tribune, Index on Censorship and The New Humanist. His previous publications include comic book adaptations of The Waste Land and Tristram Shandy, a novel, Snatches, published by Jonathan Cape in 2006 and a memoir, Stuff. He lives with his wife in south-east London.