You probably know the origin story. George Beard and Harold Hutchins—the stars of Captain Underpants—created a hero with the head of a dog and the body of a cop. It sounds ridiculous because it is. But for millions of kids (and the parents currently tripping over hardcovers in the hallway), Dog Man is a gateway drug to reading. If you’re hunting for a dog man books in order list, you aren't just looking for a sequence of numbers. You’re trying to navigate a sprawling, multi-series "Pilkey-verse" that now includes the Cat Kid Comic Club and various spin-offs.
Dav Pilkey didn't just write a funny comic. He tapped into the way kids actually think. The humor is loud. The action is frantic. The "Flip-O-Rama" pages probably have a higher carbon footprint than some small countries.
Here is the thing: reading them out of order won't ruin your life, but it might confuse you. Characters like Petey the Cat undergo genuine, surprising emotional growth. If you jump from book one to book ten, you're going to wonder why the world's most "evil" cat is suddenly a tired dad trying to do the right thing.
The Definitive Dog Man Books in Order List
Let's get straight to the sequence. The series kicked off in 2016 and hasn't slowed down.
- Dog Man (2016): This is the messy beginning. We get the "surgery" that creates our hero. It’s episodic, weird, and establishes the rivalry with Petey.
- Dog Man: Unleashed (2016): This one introduces Flat Petey and focuses heavily on the "gone wrong" science tropes that Pilkey loves to parodize.
- Dog Man: A Tale of Two Kitties (2017): This is arguably the most important book in the series. Why? Because we meet Li’l Petey. He’s a clone of the villain, but he’s pure of heart. This shifts the entire DNA of the series from a simple "cop vs. criminal" vibe to a story about nature versus nurture.
- Dog Man and Cat Kid (2017): Li’l Petey takes on a superhero persona. It’s adorable. It’s also where the cast starts to feel like a family.
- Dog Man: Lord of the Fleas (2018): We get the FLEAS (Fuzzy Little Evil Animal Squad). It’s a riff on Lord of the Flies, obviously, but with way more fart jokes.
- Dog Man: Brawl of the Wild (2018): Dog Man goes to jail for a crime he didn't commit. It’s a bit darker (for a book about a dog-headed man), but it's a fan favorite for the emotional payoff.
- Dog Man: For Whom the Ball Rolls (2019): The focus shifts heavily toward Petey’s redemption arc. We meet his father, which explains a lot about why Petey was so grumpy to begin with.
- Dog Man: Fetch-22 (2019): This is where we see the Fairies and some of the more surreal elements of the series.
- Dog Man: Grime and Punishment (2020): Petey has to face his past literally. The emotional stakes here are actually pretty high for a graphic novel aimed at eight-year-olds.
- Dog Man: Mothering Heights (2021): This book dealt with a lot of the isolation and "big feelings" that came out of the pandemic era. It’s surprisingly poignant.
- Dog Man: Twenty Thousand Fleas Under the Sea (2023): The FLEAS return. There’s a giant submarine. It’s classic Pilkey chaos.
- Dog Man: The Scarlet Shedder (2024): This is the most recent heavy hitter. Dog Man gets sprayed by a skunk and has to deal with the social fallout of being smelly. It’s a great metaphor for being an outcast.
- Dog Man: Big Jim Gets the Bites (Expected Late 2024/2025): The hype for this is already massive in elementary schools across the globe.
Why the Order Actually Matters for Petey
Most people think Dog Man is the main character. Honestly? It’s Petey. Dog Man is a "static" character—he’s always good, he’s always silly, he always wants to chew on the chief’s couch. He doesn't change because he’s already perfect in his own doggy way.
Petey is different.
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If you follow the dog man books in order list, you watch a legitimate redemption arc. He starts as a generic villain who wants to destroy the world because he’s lonely. Then he clones himself to have a friend, but Li’l Petey turns out to be "good," forcing Petey to become a parent. By book nine, he’s actively trying to be a better person. It’s a sophisticated narrative hidden under layers of puns and slapstick. Kids catch onto this. They see Petey struggling to be good and they relate to it.
Where Cat Kid Comic Club Fits In
Wait. There’s more.
If you finish the main list and your kid is still screaming for more, you move to Cat Kid Comic Club. This is a spin-off series featuring Li’l Petey and Molly. While Dog Man is about "crime-fighting," Cat Kid is about creativity.
It’s meta-fiction. The characters in the book are literally trying to write their own comics. It teaches kids about different art styles—photography, claymation, watercolor—and encourages them to make their own mistakes.
- Cat Kid Comic Club (2020)
- Cat Kid Comic Club: Perspectives (2021)
- Cat Kid Comic Club: On Purpose (2022)
- Cat Kid Comic Club: Collaborations (2022)
- Cat Kid Comic Club: Influencers (2023)
You don't have to read these in the middle of the Dog Man series, but chronologically, they start happening after the events of book nine or ten. If you want the "full" experience, start these after Grime and Punishment.
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Understanding the "Pilkey Style"
Why does this series dominate the New York Times bestseller list every single time a new book drops? It’s not just the marketing. Dav Pilkey has ADHD and dyslexia. He was frequently sent to the hallway in school for being "disruptive." That’s where he created these characters.
He writes for the "reluctant reader."
The sentences are snappy. The vocabulary is surprisingly advanced (he uses words like "propensity" and "melancholy"), but the context clues in the drawings make it accessible. He also uses a lot of visual storytelling. A kid can follow 40% of the plot just by looking at the expressions on the characters' faces.
The Flip-O-Rama Factor
This is the "low-tech" animation feature in every book. You put your left hand here, your right hand there, and you flip the page back and forth to make the characters "move." It sounds cheesy to adults. To a seven-year-old? It’s magic. It makes the book feel like a toy. It breaks the barrier between the reader and the physical object in their hands.
Common Misconceptions About the Series
One big mistake parents make is thinking this is a sequel to Captain Underpants. It’s not. It’s a "spin-off" within the fictional world. In the Captain Underpants universe, the main kids (George and Harold) are the ones who supposedly wrote and drew the Dog Man books.
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This explains why the spelling is sometimes intentionally wrong in the early books and why the drawings look like they were done with markers on a kitchen table. It’s intentional. It’s meant to make kids feel like they could also write a book.
Another misconception: "It's just fluff."
Actually, Pilkey weaves in heavy hitters. A Tale of Two Kitties is a riff on Dickens. For Whom the Ball Rolls tips its hat to Hemingway. He’s introducing classical literature themes through the lens of a dog cop. It’s brilliant, really.
Actionable Steps for Parents and Collectors
If you're looking to complete a collection or start one, don't just buy the individual books.
- Look for Box Sets: Scholastic almost always releases "The Epic Collection" sets that group books 1-3, 4-6, and so on. They usually come with a slipcase and are significantly cheaper than buying them separately.
- Check the Library First: Because these are so popular, libraries usually have dozens of copies. However, the "Flip-O-Rama" pages are often torn in library copies. If your kid is a "collector" type, you might want to buy.
- Don't Forget the Audiobooks: Believe it or not, these exist. They use sound effects and multiple voice actors to bring the graphic novels to life. It’s a great way to keep kids occupied during long car rides.
- The "Drawing" Angle: If your kid finishes the dog man books in order list, encourage them to use the "How to Draw" guides at the back of each book. It transitions them from passive consuming to active creating.
The most important thing to remember is that the "correct" order is whatever keeps the kid reading. If they pick up book five because the cover looks cool, let them. They'll eventually want to know how the "World's Greatest Cop" ended up with a cat for a sidekick, and they'll circle back to the beginning on their own.
Check your local indie bookstore or the Scholastic Book Fair flyers. Usually, there's a new release or a special "20-page preview" edition floating around that adds a little extra flavor to the main timeline. Keep the books accessible, keep the "Flip-O-Rama" pages intact (if you can), and let the chaos of the Dog Man world do its work.
To maximize the experience, ensure you have the Cat Kid spin-offs ready once you hit the midpoint of the main series to provide a break in the narrative style while keeping the "Pilkey-verse" momentum going. Check the copyright page of any newer edition to see if a release date for Big Jim Gets the Bites has been finalized, as Scholastic often updates these lists in the back of the newest printings.