Walkin' the Dog [Hardcover]

To start with, Walking the Dog is beautifully written, a novel composed of set of bluesy, episodic stories about a man trying to make his way with a kind of honour after spending more than half his life in prison. Socrates Fortlow has served his time, and lives in the spaces left by others (his shack of a house is in fact the walled-in space between two buildings, basically an alley with a roof and doors), taking the jobs others won't take, and dealing with the mess of modern urban life, when others look away. Over the course of the novel, we see Socrates' world slowly closing in on him, as the police hound him, and events conspire to bring him to his knees, he makes his choices and takes his chances in the only way he can; the hard way.

I haven't read a book in a very long time, which pushed me so far, without me having to work to stay with it. The sense of a man outside of any kind of legal norm, who has done bad, bad things in his life, and is now living with the rage and the guilt that causes, is just fantastic. I couldn't put it down, and frequently found my heart was beating so hard I thought I'd do myself an injury. One of the best books I've read in years.

Socrates Fortlow is an ex-con who is just trying to survive. His dreams are haunted by memories of his small cell and the murder he committed that placed him there. The book opens to find him operating like a future butterfly in its cocoon. He is constrained by his violent feelings, his distrust of progress and good fortune, and his discomfort with people. Like many who have sinned (all of us), he has many good qualities. He is mentoring a teenager he works with, will do more than his share of the work required, quietly endures mistreatment by white people, and cares for a badly handicapped dog who has only two legs. His great strengths are that he is interested in controlling his own actions (rather than just striking out in blind anger) and making the best moral choice (taking full responsibility for his actions).

Throughout the story, Socrates develops and finally emerges from his cocoon, and begins to seek out new opportunities and experiences. As a result, he grows as a person and as a moral force. Gradually, he begins to lose the mental bonds that hold him back from fulfilling his mighty potential.

The book is filled with much violence, hatred, and inhumanity. That backdrop will disturb many readers. Yet, for many people, life is like a battleground, and what is portrayed here is realistic in terms of inner city life for many black people.

On the other hand, the book is filled with much love, generosity, and caring. Seeing how these positive and negative forces confront and affect each other is extremely interesting in the plot that Mr. Mosley has developed. You will find it difficult to anticpate what will happen next, because of Mr. Mosley's inventiveness.

Like the Greek Socrates, Socrates Fortlow asks many questions and his questions help others to find their own solutions, as well. You will find yourself pondering the questions, long after you close the book.

The dog, Killer, is an astonishing metaphor for Socrates' life (and indeed our own), and will help every reader to appreciate the nuances in this story.

As much as I enjoyed the Easy Rawlins series, this book vastly transcends those fine books to move into the rarified air of great literature. Many will see the obvious similarities to Les Miserables, but I found Socrates Fortlow to be a greater creation than Jean Valjean was. Also, Mr. Mosley does a better job of character development with Socrates Fortlow than Victor Hugo did with Jean Valjean.

After you finish this story, think about where pessimism has stolen choices from you. What else can you choose to do that will set you free from the limitations of your mind? Like Killer, realize that you may need some help from others in order to accomplish everything you potentially can.

Choose to live free of your preconceptions!