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Sick Puppy

Carl Hiaasen

669 pages

A gleefully chaotic and twisted satirical romp through the Florida wilderness, fueled by eco-vigilantism and political muckraking.

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What it feels like

This outrageously funny mystery reads with a brisk, chaotic energy, plunging the reader into a brilliantly twisted world of Florida eco-vigilantism. The mood is gleefully irreverent, balancing a powerful ecological plea with riotous, muckraking satire. As the narrative accelerates through a bizarre landscape of singing toads, corrupt politicians, and dognapping eco-terrorists, the emotional arc shifts from simmering frustration over environmental destruction to a cathartic, absurd pursuit of justice. The prose is sharp and unapologetically twisted, delivering biting commentary on greed and runaway development without ever losing its sense of fun. It is a perfect match for readers who crave biting political satire, chaotic environmental crusades, and a cast of deeply eccentric characters fighting for the wilderness.

Mood
  • chaotic
  • twisted
  • gleeful
  • absurd
Tone
  • satirical
  • outrageous
  • riotous
  • muckraking
  • irreverent
Pace
brisk
Themes
environmental preservation · political corruption · vigilante justice · corporate greed · absurdity of modern life
The writing
Sharp, outrageously funny, and brilliantly twisted, delivering biting ecological commentary wrapped in riotous entertainment.
The arc
Moves from simmering frustration at environmental destruction to a gleefully chaotic and cathartic pursuit of vigilante justice.
Who it's for
Readers who love biting political satire, chaotic eco-vigilantism, and outrageously funny mysteries set in the Florida wilderness.
Content notes
  • eco-terrorism
  • animal kidnapping
  • explosions and arson
  • political corruption

About the book

When Palmer Stoat notices the black pickup truck following him on the highway, he fears his precious Range Rover is about to be carjacked. But Twilly Spree, the man tailing Stoat, has vengeance, not sport-utility vehicles, on his mind. Idealistic, independently wealthy and pathologically short-tempered, Twilly has dedicated himself to saving Florida's wilderness from runaway destruction. He favors unambiguous political statements -- such as torching Jet-Skis or blowing up banks -- that leave his human targets shaken but re-educated.After watching Stoat blithely dump a trail of fast-food litter out the window, Twilly decides to teach him a lesson. Thus, Stoat's prized Range Rover becomes home to a horde of hungry dung beetles. Which could have been the end to it had Twilly not discovered that Stoat is one of Florida's cockiest and most powerful political fixers, whose latest project is the "malling" of a pristine Gulf Coast island. Now the real Hiaasen-variety fun begins...Dognapping eco-terrorists, bogus big-time hunters, a Republicans-only hooker, an infamous ex-governor who's gone back to nature, thousands of singing toads and a Labrador retriever greater than the sum of his Labrador parts -- these are only some of the denizens of Carl Hiaasen's outrageously funny new novel.Brilliantly twisted entertainment wrapped around a powerful ecological plea, Sick Puppy gleefully lives up to its title and gives us Hiaasen at his riotous and muckraking best.From the Hardcover edition.

Description from Open Library.

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