Dogs of War

I must admit, I broke one of my most cardinal reading rules with this book! I looked ahead! Spoilers! (And with that, be warned as my spoiling will probably spoil this book if you wanted to read it!)

But I did it with a very good reason. In this book there are heroic tales about 3 dogs used by the Brits and US Armies to aid for the war effort. The first story takes place in the trenches of the Western Front (WWI) where a young medic and his rescue dog wind up with an Irish unit after a massive shelling attack. I just knew the dog was going to die in the end and there was no way I was going to read this book if I got attached to a 4-legged friend only for him or her to buy it Old Yeller Style.

But, I finished the book, so obviously the dogs all lived, right? Well, with two of these dogs, their fate is left up in the air, but all 3 remained alive and well by stories end. So if they died tragically in combat, it’s a story for another time to be told in their future.

The other two stories involve American dog handlers. The first of those tales involves an Artic rescue team in Greenland as they provide safety and rescue for planes using the island nation as a way station before heading to Europe. I did not know that we secretly set up air strips in Greenland a good 6 months before Pearl Harbor and if the Nazis found out, it would’ve been an act of war on our parts. I also did not know that we fought Nazis on North American soil, although some consider Greenland to be part of Europe (See: A Risk board game)

The final story is told in flashbacks with a GI trying to adjust to life back home after a stint in Vietnam. PTSD, racism, and a touching story between the wounded vet and a young neighbor who’s struggling to train his new puppy makes this perhaps the most powerful of the 3 tales. But I enjoyed all three stories.

The afterword in this book gives a small history lesson on dogs and their roles in times of conflict. Events in Korea, the Gulf War, and the current war on terror in Afghanistan and Iraq are briefly mentioned along with the three wars covered in this book. I would be pleasantly surprised if another volume covering the wars I mentioned early was published as a companion piece to this book. I’d very much have to read it.

The art and coloring varies. There’s a Paul Pope quality to the works with splashes of Darwyn Cooke. I really love Cooke’s art but Pope’s is hit and miss. However, it was very detailed and I enjoyed the use of color schemes as well as varying art-styles during flashbacks and scenes from a soldier’s private sketches.

Lastly, I want to talk about the rating for this book. The book itself has no rating on the front or back cover.  But I found this in the Children and Youth graphic novel shelf in New Arrivals at my local library. Amazon considers Dogs of War to be for ages 8-12. I just think 8 is too young for kids to be reading and seeing (this is a graphic novel) war and death. There isn’t any swears but at least one Nazi buys it Rambo style (Knife slit to the throat from behind) and several soldiers are gunned down violently. Yes- red ink flows from the colorist’s marker in these stories. So, I would at least advise parents and schools to possibly let only ages 10 and up read this book and with anything war/ violence/ and adult themes related, use discretion when letting youngsters read this book.

   And for adult readers like me, this book isn’t dumbed down. It’s the same quality of work I would expect from DC or Marvel’s voluminous war titles that were geared to teens and adults from the 60s onward. You too can enjoy this book and not feel like you’re reading a Disney novel!

Worth Consuming.

Rating: 8 out of 10 stars