The Bridegroom Was a Dog

Once upon a time there was a lit­tle princess who was still too young to wipe her­self af­ter she went to the lava­tory, and the woman as­signed to look af­ter her was too lazy to do it for her, so she used to call the princess's fa­vorite black dog and say, “If you lick her bot­tom clean, one day she'll be your bride,” and in time the princess her­self be­gan look­ing for­ward to that day.

“The Bridegroom Was a Dog” by Yoko Tawada is a surreal novella that opens with Mitsuko, a schoolteacher, recounting a bizarre fairy tale to her students. In the story, a princess promises her hand in marriage to a dog that licks her bottom clean. As the lines between her tale and reality blur, Mitsuko encounters a mysterious man with canine qualities, leading to a bizarre affair framed by the townsfolk's gossip. Tawada's narrative seamlessly weaves together elements of folklore, magical realism, and contemporary life, all tinged with dark undertones.

Al­though he didn't have a job — didn't do any­thing, re­ally, ex­cept take care of the laun­dry, cook­ing, and clean­ing — he was never bored enough to re­sort to read­ing or watch­ing tele­vi­sion, and his prin­ci­pal hobby was smelling her body;

Exploring the intersection of fantasy and reality, Tawada delves into the transformative power of storytelling and the fluidity of identity. She challenges the boundaries between human and animal, teacher and student, myth and truth, and loneliness and connection. Through her unique narrative style, Tawada invites readers to question the nature of reality and the roles we play in our own stories, blending a child-like interplay of strangeness and acceptance. Thought-provoking, layered, and freaking weird.