Dogs and Us: A Fifteen-Thousand-Year Friendship

Translated from Italian, Dogs and Us is a nonfiction picture book that highlights the relationship between humans and dogs throughout history. Thousands of years ago, dogs were wild and competed with humans for food. Eventually, they were domesticated and served as protectors, herders, rescuers, hunters, guides and sled pullers, but, perhaps, most importantly, they were much-loved companions that became a part of a human’s family.

From the vibrant cover and colourful checkerboard pattern of dogs on the endpapers, it is clear that this is a book for very young children. For the most part, the language is simple, but some of the information is above the heads of the target audience and not only requires an adult’s explanation of the words (for example, “We shared the same victories. And the same defeats. The same risks with the same courage.”), but also an explanation of what is happening in the illustrations. The illustrations depict people, places and dogs all around the world. At the back of the book are two double-page spreads which showcase each of the dogs that appear in the book. Here again, the brief descriptions beneath the illustrations consist of vocabulary more suitable for an older child. Perhaps the disconnect is due to the book’s being translated from another language, but the main body of the text, certainly, could use a bit of revision.

The digitally created illustrations, rendered primarily in bold shades of red, mustard yellow, orange, green and brown, are quite simple, yet they contain plenty of details for children to discover and opportunities to learn a little about history.