Dog Man by Dav Pilkey

Meet a crime-fighting hero unlike any other in Dog Man, the first book in Dav Pilkey’s enormously popular children’s graphic novel series.

Created by the author and illustrator behind Captain Underpants, Dog Man introduces a hero who is part police officer, part dog and completely committed to stopping crime—even when his canine instincts occasionally make his job more complicated.

Scholastic describes Dog Man as a crime-fighting canine who is part dog, part man and all hero, and identifies this title as the first book in the bestselling series.

How Dog Man Is Created

The story begins with police officer Knight and his loyal police dog Greg.

After the pair are badly injured while confronting a criminal, doctors come up with an unusual solution that combines the strongest surviving parts of both partners.

The result is Dog Man—a heroic police officer with the body of a human and the head of a dog.

Dog Man has a powerful sense of justice, excellent instincts and plenty of enthusiasm for catching criminals. Unfortunately, he also has some unmistakably dog-like habits.

He may be chasing criminals one moment and distracted by something much more interesting to a dog the next.

This mixture of superhero action and silly humour forms the basis of the series.

A Graphic Novel Packed with Comedy

Dog Man is presented as a full-colour graphic novel rather than a traditional chapter book.

The story uses:

• colourful comic panels
• speech bubbles
• cartoons
• visual jokes
• exaggerated expressions
• action scenes
• drawing activities
• interactive Flip-O-Rama-style sequences
• short, easy-to-follow chapters

Scholastic highlights the book’s full-colour presentation and comic-book storytelling.

The format can be particularly attractive to children who enjoy stories and humour but may be less interested in books made up entirely of long pages of text.

From the World of Captain Underpants

Within the story, Dog Man is imagined as a comic-book creation by George and Harold, the two young creators familiar from Dav Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series.

That connection gives the book a deliberately playful, homemade-comic feeling.

Readers do not need to have read Captain Underpants before starting Dog Man, however. This first volume introduces Dog Man and his world clearly enough to work as the beginning of its own series.

Petey the Cat

One of Dog Man’s most memorable enemies is Petey the Cat.

Petey is clever, mischievous and regularly involved in schemes that create problems for Dog Man and the people around him.

The rivalry between Dog Man and Petey becomes one of the recurring elements of the wider series.

Later books give many characters greater emotional depth, but this first book establishes the humour, action and personalities that make the series work.

Friendship, Kindness and Persistence

Although Dog Man contains plenty of ridiculous jokes and chaotic action, the series also explores positive themes.

Scholastic specifically identifies themes including:

• empathy
• kindness
• persistence
• friendship
• doing the right thing
• being true to yourself.

These themes help the series appeal to parents and educators as well as children.

The lessons are generally worked into the story through humour and character choices rather than presented as formal moral instruction.

Good for Reluctant Readers

One reason graphic novels such as Dog Man can be useful for developing readers is that illustrations provide additional context alongside the written text.

The combination of pictures, dialogue and short sections can make the story feel less intimidating than a long traditional novel.

Scholastic recommends the series for children around age 7 and above, while its Canadian catalogue places the book approximately within ages 7–13.

Individual reading ability varies, so younger confident readers and older children who enjoy humorous comics may also find the series appealing.

Dog Man Series Reading Order

This is Book 1 and the correct starting point for the series.

The early reading order begins:

1. Dog Man
2. Dog Man Unleashed
3. A Tale of Two Kitties
4. Dog Man and Cat Kid
5. Lord of the Fleas
6. Brawl of the Wild
7. For Whom the Ball Rolls
8. Fetch-22
9. Grime and Punishment
10. Mothering Heights

The series has continued well beyond these volumes. Scholastic’s current catalogue lists numerous later Dog Man books and collections.

About Dav Pilkey

Dav Pilkey is the author and illustrator of Dog Man, Captain Underpants, Cat Kid Comic Club and many other children’s books.

Scholastic explains that Pilkey began drawing comics when he was a child and that the characters that eventually became Captain Underpants and Dog Man developed from those early creations.

Scholastic reports that the Dog Man series launched in 2016 and has grown into an international publishing success with tens of millions of copies in print.

For children who enjoy superheroes, dogs, mischievous villains, comics and laugh-out-loud adventures, Dog Man Book 1 is the ideal place to begin.