Rating: 
Summary: So so
Review: A short-tempered eco-terrorist wreaks havoc on the life of a selfish and conniving litterbug lobbyist, without realizing the danger he's inviting. In the midst of it all is a kidnapped labrador retriever and the lobbyist's wife. One can't help but notice the 'us vs. them' theme of the novel--politicians and developers are evil, extreme nature-hating sadists, while conservationists are beacons of intelligence and pathos. Even I, as a liberal, can see exagerrated stereotypes at use in the novel. Nevertheless, it's often fun to read and the story line is truly unique. The characters are colorful, although there are probably too many of them. Throw in Barbie dolls and a rhino and it starts to feel like a circus. Not highly recommended, but not bad either.
Rating: 
Summary: This is great Hiaasen
Review: After reading Luck You, I was extremely pleased with Sick Puppy. A trust-funded young man with anger-management problems by the name of Twilly makes it his mission to keep South Florida clean. His main target is a lobbyist with some fetishes that might be considered strange, until you read about the other characters. Twilly attempts to teach the man a lesson...several times, but he just doesn't get through to him until he gets the man's dog, renames him and then starts to sabotage one of the lobbyist's biggest projects, the ripples of which reach far into the politics of Florida, which is already funny itself. An enjoyable addition to this book is that the dog is used as a great character too. The description of what Boodles/McGuinn is thinking and doing is excellent and doglovers out there will be nodding along with this. Twilly is an okay character that is actually the most normal of them all along with Desi, the wife of the lobbyist. The rest of the characters are where the real fun can be found. The plot is fantastic in both senses of the word, but the characters have basis in real world politicians and slick businessmen, or rather how we might perceive them to be. Overall, a great book that is refreshing and humorous.
Rating:
Summary: Quite entertaining, another Hiaasen success!
Review: Evidently my mind works well with the writings of Carl Hiaasen. I thoroughly enjoy each of his works, usually can't stop reading them until the final page is turned. His imaginitive escapades, intelligent storylines and "the bad guy always gets his" mentality are just a few of the enjoyments Carl delivers. As with all of Hiaasen's books, this one provides suspense, witty dialogue and, of course, a wonderful environmentally-sound tale.
As always, a great job Mr. Hiaasen!
Rating:
Summary: Hiaasen's Best Yet!
Review: From the younger-generation eco-terrorist, Twilly, to the evil cigar-addict/habitual litter bug/lobbyist, Stoat, and his wife, who's had enough of Stoat's use of his Polaroid in their bedroom, to our old friend, Hiaasen's original eco-terrorist, Skink, to the Barbie doll-obsessed former drug dealer turned land developer with his two 6 ft. Americanized artificial twin Eastern European Rhino-horn-crazed living Barbie sex dolls, and finally a rambunctious black lab named Boodles/McGuinn,who just wants to have fun and sniff, Hiaasen has put together the most wonderfully weird group of characters yet. The plots race toward assuring the safekeeping and seclusion of Skink's brother, the saving a small Florida island from greedy development, the liberation of Stoat's wife Desie from her horrible husband and Boodles/McGuinn serving as the inadvertant catylist in prompting a geriatric rhino to provide the main bad guys their just rewards, all in the midst of political wheeling and dealing. "Sick Puppy" is complicated and hilarious with all too true comments on human greed and our lack of concern for our planet and fellow man. This book should be required reading for all of us.
Rating: 
Summary: Too sick
Review: I love Carl Hiaasen and have read all his books but Sick Puppy was not that great. The pacing of story was inconsistent and many of the characters unlikable. I was glad to see the former governor's life story developed further.
Rating:
Summary: Woof, woof
Review: I never read any of his stuff before now, how funny. The humor and tone reminds me of Ben Elton's "Stark" a bit.
Rating:
Summary: Still funny
Review: I've read all but two of Hiaasen's books at this point so I think I'm pretty familiar with his oeuvre, as they say. And although this may not be Hiaasen at his quintissential best, it's still a very funny book. The situation with the two powdered-rhino-horn snorting, twin Barbie dolls, the way the bad-guy hit man, Mr. Gash, ironically winds up as a 911 emergency himself (he gets off listening to tapes of 911 calls), and the final climactic hunting scene with the senile rhino are all hilarious. Ex-governor Skink also has a major role, which I missed from the last two Hiaasen novels I read, where he wasn't present. His friend and protector, Jim Tile, the devoted Florida State Trooper, is also back in this book, and they always make a good pair. The way the culpable lobbyist, Palmer Stout, comes in for various abuses at the hands of Twilly Spree (not to mention the occasional hilarious descriptive details, such as Hiaasen referring to Stoat's "shrunken genitalia") had me laughing again. Although some of Hiaasen's themes are getting a little used at this point, this is still a funny book and I would recommend it to Hiaasen fans as well as newcomers to his fiction.
Rating: 
Summary: If I Were a Dog
Review: Really good Hiaasen book. The second Rhino shoot is a riot to read, and I loved the way he wrote some parts of the book from the dogs point of view, it's not too often that we get to go inside the canine mind.
Highly recommend as entertaining read.
Rating:
Summary: Worth a read!
Review: Sick Puppy is another Hiaasen classic. Full of unusual characters, humor, twisted and psychotic villains, this novel makes you laugh as well as ponder the impending future of humans versus nature. Fortunately "Skink," the ex-Governor of Florida returns, as well as the introduction of a new hero to champion the natural, unblemished part of Florida and oppose the crass commercialism of development and golf courses. Along with a black labrador, a beautiful but dissatisfied housewife, and a greedy lobbyist, this book is pure entertainment, a real page-turner! I loved it. I can't wait to read his next novel!
Rating:
Summary: Who's the Sick Puppy?
Review: So who exactly is the 'Sick Puppy' is this story?
Taken literally, it could be Boodle/McGuinn, the Labrador who needs surgery after swallowing some unusual items.
It could be Twilly Spree, the eco-vigilante who lives off his land-development trust-fund.
It could be Palmer Stoat, the slimy lobbyist and wanna-be big game hunter.
It could be Robert Clapley, the drug-smuggler-turned-land-developer with a Barbie doll fetish.
It could be Mr. Gash, the hitman who sets tapes of 911 calls to classical music.
It could be 'Skink', the former governor who lives in a swamp and dines on roadkill. Any number of the oddball characters in this crime farce fit the description of 'Sick Puppy'. Even the good guys seem like they should be locked away somewhere. Most of the female characters (Palmer's wife, Twilly's mom, and the governor's assistant) are a little more normal, but they all seem to be drawn to the wrong men. The story unfolds as minor littering incident escalates to dog-napping, and then through several twists and turns it completely blows up from there. Many of the events may seem unbelievable, but this is a COMIC novel, and it was clearly meant to appeal to people who would think that a scrotum-biting chipmunk is funny.
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