Death Sty: A Pig's Tale is an amazing, original, thought-provoking piece of fiction. I feel compelled to first say what this book is not: it is not an expose of the shocking cruelty taking place in slaughterhouses, nor is it a vehicle in which the author tries to convince you to become a vegetarian. This is basically a pig's story of his life and its grand purpose. This is no ordinary pig, however; he is a philosopher, political theorist, and sociologist blessed with amazing insight. Our unnamed narrator describes his current life inside a small enclosure at a slaughterhouse, referring back to his days of youth and continually looking forward to the day when his ultimate goal will be achieved. That ultimate goal is nothing less than his slaughter; he glories in the thought of his posthumous legacy as food for humankind. He devotes himself to forming the best hocks, ham, blood sausage, etc. He explains the course of his life, even providing a statistical chart showing his estimates of how much he weighed at each step of weaning, fasting, braking, etc. He knows full well what will happen to him when he reaches the butcher's domain, almost delighting in the communication of each step of the final process. Although he is alone throughout the course of his tale, he describes pig society, quotes famed pig thinkers, and laments those pigs who foolishly wish to make a mockery of their lives by resisting their glorious destinies. While he views the butcher as a god of sorts, he does have much to say about swineherds. He can barely tolerate these base men who see fit to come tramping nastily into his home any time they want and insist on putting his water bucket in the middle of his enclosure, where it naturally restricts his predilection for diagonal movement, rather than beside his trough. It is these same swineherds who have perpetuated so many lies about pigkind, he declares, while they are really the nasty beings who themselves, rather than hogs, live in sty-like squalor.

He expresses thoughts of rebelling against the swineherd, often in subtle ways, but he has no use for mass porcine action against man. This pig is basically a political thinker whose complex views often ring with religious overtones--after all, paradise for the pig is found at the hands of the butcher. He disdains those pigs too shallow to understand their true purpose. Most interestingly, he decries the thought of being taken out of his enclosure and being allowed outside--he would resist this by all means at his disposal, even though he has fond memories of a short time in the meadows as a young piglet. The thought of his brethren escaping the slaughterhouse is an affront to his sensibilities. Such an act betrays the very heritage of pigkind.

Clearly, this is political and social satire at a high level. One reading is not sufficient to truly understand everything the author is trying to communicate. The religious connotations immersed in the story are quite subtle and in no way offensive, but it is the pig's thoughts on politics and pig society that make this book so thought-provoking. I would say this is essentially a work of natural philosophy clothed in the guise of brilliant satire. Its originality, subtlety, and universality afford this short novel an honored position in my library of literary treasures.