Dog Boy (novel)


Dog Boy is a novel by Australian author Eva Hornung. It won the 2010 Prime Minister's Literary Award for fiction and was inspired by the story of feral child Ivan Mishukov.

Plot summary

Romochka is a feral child, raised by dogs and found on the streets of Moscow in the summer of 1998. He appears to be six years old and has been with the pack for two years. This novel examines his life on the streets and the changes he undergoes as he transforms from "dog" to "boy".

Dedication

This book is "For Philip Waldron".

Reviews

Writing in The Guardian reviewer John Burnside called the book "a wonderful novel, a tour de force, even."
In Australian Book Review Judith Armstrong noted that "the whole novel is beautifully written".

Awards and nominations

Translations

  • German: Dog Boy. Translation by Thomas Gunkel. Suhrkamp Verlag 2011..
  • Spanish: El Niño Perro. Editorial Salamandra 2010..