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In this colorful yet dark and twisted book, readers meet Boris the Dog, a furry friend who is ready for a big adventure. After Boris decides that he has had enough of his home life and wants to see the big city, he develops and executes a heinous and demented plan that will help him escape his owners. After Boris devours his owners’ child, he proceeds on a dark path of even more recklessness. His actions influence others to pursue dark and angry paths, and soon, unbelievable chaos unfolds. Nonetheless, Boris manages to reach the city, where the amount of buildings and people surprise him. However, the traffic and the large population are not the only surprises in store for him after he crosses into the city’s limits.
This book is initially deceptive in terms of its illustrations and plotlines. Boris’ tale begins like an innocent children’s story. It quickly diverges into an adult-only story filled with murder, bloodshed, and a psychopathic neighbor who believes his rampage is a sign from the universe. The juxtaposition of the violent story with the colorful illustrations reinforces the book’s dark humor. In fact, when readers find themselves laughing at Boris’ actions as well as those of the neighbor, they may, in fact, question their moral center.
Nonetheless, despite the book’s laughable celebration of moral depravity, it actually offers readers a much-needed lesson about consequences. For example, Boris is a carefree dog who simply wants to fulfill his desire to see the big city. This desire leads him to kill a few of the family members who loved him. After Boris embarks on an adventure to soil the neighbor’s lawn, the neighbor murders the last remaining member of Boris’ human family and has a surreal out-of-body experience that ultimately leads the neighbor to his own demise. Thus, if Boris’ own desires had not consumed him, and if he had not made the choice to defecate on the neighbor’s lawn, then perhaps the outcome for everyone may have been less bleak. Perhaps, too, Boris offers readers a lesson about how unchecked desires and passions can have dire outcomes if one pursues them without forethought and careful consideration. In many ways, Boris possesses the characteristics of a rock star who begins pursuing what they think will be a liberating evening yet results in a highly debaucherous bender.
If bleak endings are what readers crave, then this book definitely has that to offer them. Its illustrations are darkly comical, and the twisted tale of Boris is one that readers will not quickly forget. The illustrations themselves offer readers unique visual access. In fact, readers can create their own Boris experience by viewing the illustrations independently of reading the actual story. Nonetheless, despite the book’s twisted take on a dog’s tale, those who wish to find a deeper, philosophical narrative can find that and use Boris’ experiences as a warning about what might happen if they pursue life hedonistically. This type of book establishes a new genre of graphic (in all sense of the word) literature for adults.