Sergeant Chip by Bradley Denton

“Sergeant Chip” is a 2004 science fiction novella by Bradley Denton. It is about a military dog who has a special ability to communicate with his handler.

Non-Spoiler Summary In A Nutshell:

Chip is a specially trained military dog that has been implanted with a nifty microchip - one that allows him to communicate with (and see the thoughts of) his trainer, Lieutenant Dial. The two have spent many years together training and serving in the K-9 unit. Chip is astounding when it comes to his military duties - he can evade gunfire, rescue soldiers, whip the troops into shape and even take down small groups of enemy soldiers! In fact the two do so well together that they are promoted and sent to active duty in the war. When they finally arrive in the “dry and sunny” country, they learn a very harsh lesson as they try to figure out who the real enemy is.

Then Lieutenant Dial looked across the lawn at a sandbagged machine-gun nest and gave me the hand signal to attack. I knew he was going to give me the signal as soon as he looked across at the sandbags, but I also knew I should wait for it. The people in the bleachers wouldn’t like it if I didn’t.

But I jumped away fast when he gave it. I ran for the sandbags, and the machine gun opened fire. It was firing blank cartridges, but I knew from training that I had to act as if the ammunition could hurt me. So I zigzagged and made quick stops behind cardboard rocks, stacks of tires, and other things that were on the lawn between Lieutenant Dial and the machine-gun nest. The machine-gun barrel swiveled to follow me, but I was too fast and tricky for it, because when I ran behind a cardboard rock, I would come out in a different direction. The machine-gun barrel couldn’t keep up, and soon I was right under it so it couldn’t point at me. Then I jumped up over the sandbags and pushed the gunner onto his back. Two mock-enemies on either side of him pointed rifles at me, so I bit one in the crotch and twisted so that he fell against the other one. Then all three mock-enemies were on their backs, and I bit the pads at their throats. A bell sounded over the loudspeaker as I broke the skin of each pad and the mock-blood came out. After the third bell, the people in the bleachers clapped.

My Two Cents:

• The good:

• I loved that this story was told from the point of view of Chip the dog. It made it simple and easy to read. Quite fun!
• I also liked the fact that when the two of them get to the real war they find that things are not black and white - it is often difficult to tell who the bad guys are.
• Gosh darn if Chip isn’t a cool dog! Who wouldn’t want an awesome dog like this as their buddy in a war?

• The bad:

• There are a couple instances of mild profanity.
• Although I absolutely loved this story, there were a few times where I was thinking that Chip (the narrating dog) was quite verbose - especially since the whole story is supposed to be a letter from Chip to the enemy commander. Quite a letter!

Fact Sheet:
• Page Count: 50
• Word Count: 20,158
• “Sergeant Chip” garnered the following awards:

• This story was the winner of the 2005 Sturgeon Award.
• “Sergeant Chip” was nominated for the 2005 Hugo Award for Best Novella.
• It also placed third in the 2005 Locus Poll for best novella.

Where you can find “Sergeant Chip”:

• This novella first appeared in the September 2004 issue of Fantasy & Science Fiction.
• “Sergeant Chip” is included in a collection of 2005 stories called Year’s Best SF 10.
• You can read a very nice online copy for free at the author’s web site.

Some Interesting Links:

• Did you know that Bradley Denton, the author of “Sergeant Chip”, studied fiction writing and the history of science fiction under KU English Professor James E. Gunn? Yep. You can learn more about this science fiction author by reading the biography on his web site.
• “Sergeant Chip” is listed at number 94 on the list of Top 100 SF Short Stories. (Retrieved on June 11, 2008)

Craving More Stories?
If you enjoyed this story then you might also like A Dry, Quiet War, about a hero from the war at the end of time who returns to his home planet only to find more trouble, by Tony Daniel.

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