Li'l Petey gets caught in some family drama in the eighth Dog Man book from worldwide bestselling author and artist Dav Pilkey. Petey the Cat is out of jail, and he has a brand-new lease on life. While Petey's reevaluated what matters most, Li'l Petey is struggling to find the good in the world. Can Petey and Dog Man stop fighting like cats and dogs long enough to put their paws together and work as a team? They need each other now more than ever -- Li'l Petey (and the world) is counting on them! Dav Pilkey's wildly popular Dog Man series appeals to readers of all ages and explores universally positive themes, including empathy, kindness, persistence, and the importance of doing good.
David "Dav" Pilkey (b. March 4, 1966), is a popular children's author and artist. Pilkey is best known as the author and illustrator of the Captain Underpants book series. He lives near Seattle, Washington with his wife, Sayuri.
Can Dog Man and his Supa Friends stop the Fair Fairy and a band of Supa-Angry Psychokinetic Tadpoles? Just one of the many dilemmas you will find in this eighth book of the Dog Man series. There are some panels about Commander Cupcake that really "took the cake." I laughed out loud when we saw his pretend "compyuduh" and his cupcakemobile made out of cardboard. It needed to have a couple more paper plates -- I mean, wheels -- added before he could go save the world. Lucky Petey gets go tag along. One of the most endearing plot lines was Lil' Petey or Cat Kid and his comic book club. He can't help but be an ambassador of good will wherever he goes. Such a cutie! As always, there are bits and pieces borrowed from classic works like the Bible, Oscar Wilde, and Frosty the Snowman. George and Harold have done it again!
I don't think this book borrowed very much from Catch-22, which is bad news for my Dog Man book club.
Anyway, the book is great. Petey's character development continues! Flippy gets a redemption arc! Great depiction of positive co-parenting! There's so much to love in this entire series, and I wish more of my library's parent population would pay attention while reading it with their kids rather than just dismissing Dog Man as crass and boorish. Dog Man's readers came for the poop jokes and stayed for the gentle lessons on morality and kindness.
Everyone's favorite show, The Fair Fairy is on and behind the scenes it is revealed that the fair fairy has gone bonkers and the fair fairy is fired. Flippy the fish makes a comeback and the fish has been serving time in fish jail but it has also changed since becoming friends with Li'l Petey.
Petey's father was busted for stealing and has been spending time in cat jail but he comes up with a plan to break out of jail and getting Petey to serve the rest of his jail time. Petey and Commander cupcake team up and save the day. Supa buddies also team up and fight the evil tadpoles and the fair fairy. This was another good read.
4.5 stars for this one. The Fair Fairy is hilarious! There were parts of this that made me guffaw. Funny, cute, and full of heart and tender moments that made me smile.
I want to love this book, with one exception- and yes, I am going there. Skip over these online musings if identity politics are going to make you attack me online. I don't have time for that.
Downward Dog repeatedly calls the Fair Fairy "dude" after being asked not to use that term. On pg. 19 Fair Fairy says, "And don't call me "dude." We've talked about that!" - Intentionally misgendering is not okay. (If you don't believe me have a nice, honest chat with your HR director at work about it. Title IX - even if the ERA extended deadline passed 37.5 years ago, but Virginia finally got their poop in a group in 2020.) I am upset to see this in a children's book as a laugh line. It is never addressed within the text and it is almost excused because it is happening to the villain. Nope. Just nope. There is no reason to bring gender based identity violence into a children's book without addressing it for what it is.
I feel like an old friend has let me down and that I need to speak my peace. I read the piece. I got the context. But puppet...same character...blah...blah...blah. I do not have time for cheap laugh lines that come at the expense of people I love - full stop.
***Edit*** - I lied. There is more. So much more.
I walked away from this review, but I am not able to let it go. My profile identifies me as female and living in Alaska. The intersection of the violence in this one little square has pushed me over the edge and I feel the need to send my lecture into the internet void. If I have learned anything from BookToss it is that to be an ally means "to cause a ruckus and pass the mic." - Here we go.
Intentionally using the wrong name or pronoun is a violence that hits hard against Native communities. - Read that again. Children were removed from their homes, forced into government boarding schools (I know elders that were sent from Alaska to Oklahoma, and farther), and forcibly "assimilated." Most of the time the oppressive systems refused to adopt any of the languages. Names were changed to make them easier for white outsiders. This STILL happens. This is traumatic. I have stepped in to correct adults when they do not use a child's preferred name. WHEN A PERSON TELLS YOU THEIR PREFERRED NAME AND/OR PRONOUNS USE THEM. This is not difficult. This is a matter of basic human respect.
Violence against women in Alaska is unbelievably high. It is even higher for Native women. (Do I need to say that gender is a social construct and I may not have the terminology correct, but I mean ALL WOMEN, so sit down TERFs - I do not have time for that, either?) Intentionally misgendering, in a child's book, as a laugh line enrages and upsets me. This is violence against women as a punchline intended for ten year olds.
Reading, especially books like the Dog Man series, is an escapist act for me, and many others. I have not seen the sun in almost three months. I enjoy the simple pleasure of a fun book with silly potty humor and a children's moral to shorten the long polar night. I do not need a very serious and real problem in my community turned into a laugh line. This is beyond insulting. Violence against women should never be a punchline in a children's book. (Did I really have to type that line in 2020?!) Humor is about power and it should not come at the expense of any one person or group. And this definitely should not happen in materials with a targeted demographic under the age of ten.
I have gone round and round with children about using the pronouns a person chooses. I have gone round and round with adults about using the name a child chooses. These are not laughing matters for me. I have witnessed the violence that grows out of casually calling someone "dude" after she has repeatedly asked for it to stop. I have seen the violence escalate in remote communities to the point of people needing to leave for their own safety. It did not start out as physical violence; it started out with wrong pronouns and cruel intentions - it started as a joke. No single drop thinks it is responsible for the flood. Children's books are mirrors, windows, and sliding glass doors (Bishop, 1990 - If you don't know this and you are still reading you need to read this essay https://scenicregional.org/wp-content... and all of the work built on it after.) This type of easily dismissed violence is a behavior that I have actively fought against and I feel betrayed to see it reflected back to me from the pages of a series I enjoy.
Pilkey is a champion of intellectual freedoms. He is an advocate of literacy and libraries. I expect better.
Dog Man Fetch-22 was just okay. This is the 8th book in the series and the last one we own. I think there is a book 9 coming out... or maybe it already is.
In this book we see a lot of growth in the characters. Some evil ones turn good and some are in between. Petey the cat doesn’t like his good for nothing father that left him when he was little. We learn about him in book 7. In book 8, he is in jail. Lil Petey wants everyone to be good and hopes that he can rekindle a relationship between son and father.
The Fair Fairy is the villain in this book and tries to create evil minion tadpoles to help her with her revenge. But Lil Petey is do persuasive in getting people to be good. We also get Supa Flippy for a bit.
I did enjoy the ending do I’m giving this book a 3.5
Somewhat torn with this review. Read them during tutoring. The student loved them and couldn't get enough. His growing love of reading was a direct result of this series. I really didn't care for them (maybe because I am a female) but continued reading because they developed a love of reading for my 8 yr old male pupil and isn't that the reason for literature. We may not all have the same taste but we need to appreciate and respect other people's choices.
Dav Pilkey is a genius. I love his play on words and references to other literature. Actually, started pointing out some of his idioms used throughout the book. Loved Dog Man's positive outlook on life in the midst of trouble. Took me at least 4 previous books to see the "good side" of reading these books.
Soooo truth be told….I wasn’t a big fan of Mr. Pilkey’s Captain Underpants series. I loved that it kept kids reading, but overall it wasn’t my sense of humor. But Dog Man….*giggles*….is hysterical! My nephew is having a hard time transitioning from picture books to chapter books. He thinks most books are “too loooooong!” Then Dog Man came into the picture. He picked up book one at a school book fair and then passed it on to me. We loved it! The humor, colors, flip-o-rama action, and more!
Once upon a time, a man and a dog became one. A man with a dog’s head. So he fetches and sniffs and drools, but he’s also a police man. He’s Dog Man! The neighborhood hero! But our hero tends to get into trouble well ...all the time. But that’s where the laughs come in. This full cast of characters—villains and heroes--keeps you laughing and flipping and reading from cover to cover. Villains with names like Barky McTreeFace show up. Along with fun words and sounds like—“Shing”, “KLUNK”, and “CRASH!” It’s pure fun!
And dare I say it. There is also some sweet messages and heart in these pages. Especially with Pete and Li’l Petey. Don’t tell my nephew though. :D He just thinks it’s hysterical.
A perfect series for reluctant readers. I’m very happy my nephew found it and shared with me.
p.s. Li’l Petey is the CUTEST!
Recommended. Check them out from your local Library.
Don't really need to say much about the Dog Man series. Kids love them. Kids read them. They are hilarious and never get old. They are the most popular series in my library and kids fight over who gets them next. And I know I already said it but kids READ them! This latest installment is great. I laughed... a LOT. I love the tadpoles. Keep 'em coming Dav!
I really liked Dog Man: Fetch-22 because it was filled humor, adventure, friendship and love. If you like books that have humor, adventure, friendship and love then this is the book for you.
Ich fühle mich allmählich wie bei "Breaking Bad", nur umgekehrt: Man hat mir Superschurken, Verbrechen und schäbige Witze versprochen! Und jetzt geht es von Folge zu Folge immer mehr um Patchworkfamilien, Nächstenliebe und Weltverbesserung!
I loved this one. Definitely my favorite of eight books in the series so far. Best part was when Molly the little tadpole leaves all the the other tadpoles. She believes what they're doing is not okay and she knows in her heart what needs to be done to make things right.
"It is easy to join with the crowd........ .......and even easier to spread anger and hate. But it takes courage to stand alone. And kindness often takes the most courage of all."
another great book in the dog man series!! mr pilkey’s drawings are super awesome and i love the lil tadpoles!! i’m pretty excited for the next book~ it’s coming out next summer if you didn’t see the very hidden hint!!