“First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Jew. Then they came for me, and there was no one left to speak for me.” - Pastor Martin Niemöller
Once you trade out the people listed in the above poem with dogs and the Nazis with wolves, you have the core of this novel in all its damning glory as it explores the hard truths of fascism and unchecked totalitarianism through the eyes of a dog who spends each day hiding from the reality of his life. Keep your head down, ignore what happens to the neighbors, as long as you have food in your belly and a home, what does it matter if you have to give up a little bit more freedom or privacy? Sure, each day a little more of your life is gone as the noose slowly tightens around your neck, but if you just shut up and follow the rules, everything will be okay, right?
Of course, history has taught that it is never okay. If you don’t fight now, you will have to fight later, when things have become all the more desperate. While the author, David Swan, does his best to express these thoughts within his story, the message is hampered quite a bit rough writing, numerous grammatical errors, and generally unlikable characters. Unwieldy, but with a core message that rings as true as a bell, “Once When We Were Human” is a tale that is only saved from utter mediocrity by its timely central theme.
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