The dog stars
by Peter Heller · first published 2012
78% recommend22% neutral
Why HN recommends it
A post-apocalyptic novel set after a virus collapses civilization. A pilot lives in a hangar with his dog. The story is lighter and emotionally warm for the genre, and it suits readers who don't usually pick up sci-fi.
Summarised by Claude from recommending comments
"Hig is a survivor. He has survived the sickness that claimed his wife and family, and the trout he loved to fish. He is coping, just, in the new wilderness of post-apocalyptic America, because he has three things to live for - his dog, Jasper, his neighbour, Bangley, and his Cessna plane. But Hig's loneliness is becoming unbearable. When he picks up the distorted voice of another human on his radio, he is unable to shake the thought that there might be someone else out there. He knows he should resist looking - the journey will be risky and there will not be enough fuel to fly back - but he c
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What novel have you read recently that you would recommend? I've asked that in the past here and was recommended The Dog Stars and The Goldfinch, both of which I enjoyed. Probably the best books I read in 2020 are Norwegian Wood (Murakami) and Warlight: A Novel (Ondaatje).
on “My Favorite Books 2020” ↗Top three: Mockingbird, by Walter Tevis; Riddley Walker, by Russell Hoban; Glimpses of the Moon, by Edith Wharton Some other favorites: The Dog Stars, by Peter Heller; To Reign In Hell, by Steven Brust; Machine Man, by Max Barry; The Dawn Patrol, by Don Winslow; The Woman, by Hank Ketchum
on “Ask HN: What is the best fiction book you've ever read? ” ↗…fundamentally implausible. Other fiction I consider great in other genres include Memoirs of a Geisha, Cold Mountain, REAMDE, The Son, The Road, the lighter but still version of that post-apocalyptic concept The Dog Stars, City of Thieves, and All the Pretty Horses and its sequels. It's probably symptomatic of a major flaw in my character that despite also buying dozens of nonfiction works (Lincoln, On China, and so forth)…
on “Ask HN: What literature do you read?” ↗…https://www.dropbox.com/s/om9xdox53rcl1g9/Screenshot%202015-... Some of the notably awesome books on that screen: The Son, Spin (and really, almost anything by Robert Charles Wilson, but especially Spin), The Dog Stars, Blindsight and Echopraxia, Station Eleven, Seveneves and REAMDE, Nightwoods. Bonus: gut-wrenchingly awful books I started reading and aborted (or worse, read to the end on the misguided hope that somehow…
on ““Tsundoku,” the Japanese Word for the New Books That Pile Up on Our Shelves” ↗…America - Colin Woodard; I learned much about early US history. Where Men Win Glory: The Odyssey of Pat Tillman - Jon Krakauer Find Me - Laura van den Berg Station Eleven - Emily St. John Mandel The Dog Stars - Peter Heller Endurance: Shackleton's Incredible Voyage - Alfred Lansing; I was fortunate enough to read this right before Seveneves, so the references made immediate sense. Endurance looks to be popular…
on “Ask HN: Books you read in 2015?” ↗This reminds me of Peter Heller's "The Dog Stars". The setting is America after some type of virus destroys civilization. The protagonist has a Cessna and a dog and lives in a hangar. It's probably my favorite book that I read last year. I think about…
on “In a Remote Part of Utah, Life Alone in a Hangar (2012)” ↗Neil Strauss' Emergency and Peter Heller's The Dog Stars. I read the piece in the New Yorker about rich tech guys and their bug out plans for the apocalypse (including Reddit's Alex Ohanian). I love Strauss' journey from survivalist to community volunteer.…
on “Ask HN: Which book have you re-read recently?” ↗…your traditional sci-fi fan, so while the books below may not be considered masterpieces or even "true" sci-fi, they may be a good "gateway drug" for others like me: - The Postman by David Brin - The Dog Stars by Peter Heller - I am Legend by Richard Matheson
on “Ask HN: What are the best Sci-Fi books you've ever read?” ↗I read The Dog Stars after somebody here recommended it to me. Ever since then I often think about flying a small plane. If I hear one buzzing overhead I can't help myself - I have to watch it fly away. In case you are interested,…
on “Steve Wozniak's floating point routines for the 6502” ↗The Dog Stars by Peter Heller and Neuromancer by William Gibson. Both of these I've read twice. The Dog Stars held up well on my second reading. Neuromancer did not.
on “Ask HN: Which books have you read more than once?” ↗Usually special operations/espionage/post-apocalypse type fiction. Some recent examples: - The Dog Stars by Peter Heller (I've re-read this a number of times) - The Postman by David Brin (Again, re-read this many times). Nothing like the movie. - Sapiens - The book series by Dalton Fury (RIP). His fiction…
on “Ask HN: Have you stopped reading books?” ↗The Postman by David Brin The Dog Stars by Peter Heller I Am Legend by Richard Matheson Anything by Dalton Fury (RIP) One Second After by William Forstchen Black Autumn by Jeff Kirkham
on “Ask HN: What is your favorite fiction book?” ↗On a thread like this a long time ago, somebody recommended The Dog Stars to me and I read it and then a year later re-read it (it's one of three books I've ever read a second time). For some reason I never read anything else by Heller until this year. Over the summer I read…
on “Ask HN: What are you reading?” ↗Yeah, The Dog Stars is a favorite. I'm afraid to see the film, as the reviews aren't great and the previews make it look like a quite different story from the book.
on “Ask HN: What are you reading?” ↗…reading and some recommendations on previous stuff I’ve read. Fiction Right now I’m finishing up The Kremlin’s Candidate. Not great, the series has been going a bit downhill. Some recent hits: - The Dog Stars (Heller): Awful movie, incredible book. Highly recommended. - True Grit (Portis): For everyone recommending Lonesome Dove, definitely get a copy of True Grit. A fantastically fun masterpiece. A real…
on “Ask HN: What are you reading?” ↗