REVIEW – Holy Cow by David Duchovny

Title – Holy Cow: A Modern-Day Dairy Tale
Author – David Duchovny
Publication date –  February 3rd 2015 (Today!)
Publisher – Headline
Genre – Comedy (This book can’t really be defined)
Rating – ★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆   (Probably a 3.5)
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I received a proof copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Holy Cow by David Duchovny is a comic delight that will thrill fans of Jasper Fforde and Ben Aaronovitch. And anyone who enjoys a witty wisecrack in a novel.

Elsie Bovary is a cow and a pretty happy one at that. Until one night, Elsie sneaks out of the pasture and finds herself drawn to the farmhouse. Through the window, she sees the farmer’s family gathered around a bright Box God – and what the Box God reveals about something called an ‘industrial meat farm’ shakes Elsie’s understanding of her world to its core.

The only solution? To escape to a better, safer world. And so a motley crew is formed: Elsie; Shalom, a grumpy pig who’s recently converted to Judaism; and Tom, a suave turkey who can’t fly, but can work an iPhone with his beak. Toting stolen passports and slapdash human disguises, they head for the airport …

Elsie is a wise-cracking, slyly witty narrator; Tom dispenses psychiatric advice in a fake German accent; and Shalom ends up unexpectedly uniting Israelis and Palestinians. David Duchovny’s charismatic creatures point the way toward a mutual understanding and acceptance the world desperately needs. – Amazon.co.uk Description

Holy Cow is probably one of the most surreal books I’ve ever read. If I had to choose one word to describe this book with one word it’s probably be quirky. What do you expect from a book told from the point of view of a cow? Elsie was a refreshing and funny narrator to read about and her voice just carried the whole story, from her discovering what really happens to cows on farms to her mission to get to India where she believes life will be better.

Following Elsie on this adventure are two other farm animals Shalom, a Jewish pig and Tim, a turkey/amateur psychologist. Both are their own unique characters in their own right and it was entertaining to see how the bond between the three animals developed as they all attempt to make their own way in the wold and most importantly get away from the farm. It was just a really fun dynamic to read about and their interactions with each other and the outside world were hilarious.

Despite the humour the book did have a few serious messages about animal cruelty and the way farm animals live which I really appreciated. Holy Cow was an enjoyable and quick read that entertained throughout. I didn’t give it a higher rating because I just thought it was a simple entertaining book and there were a few things that just bothered me a bit, but not enough to ruin the story overall for me. Anyway if you’re into surreal, hilarious books then I definitely think this is the book for you. 🙂