Children's

Everything We Know About Dav Pilkey’s New Dog Man Book, GRIME AND PUNISHMENT

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Rebecca Hussey

Staff Writer

Rebecca holds a PhD in English and is a professor at Norwalk Community College in Connecticut. She teaches courses in composition, literature, and the arts. When she’s not reading or grading papers, she’s hanging out with her husband and son and/or riding her bike and/or buying books. She can't get enough of reading and writing about books, so she writes the bookish newsletter "Reading Indie," focusing on small press books and translations. Newsletter: Reading Indie Twitter: @ofbooksandbikes

If your house is anything like mine, news of a new Dog Man book by Dav Pilkey will bring great joy. Well, get excited, because on September 1, 2020, you can read the latest installment: Dog Man: Grime and Punishment. This will be Book #9 in the hugely-popular series that has made children and adults giggle for years. Get your preorder in now!

What We Know About Dog Man

Dog Man by Dav PilkeyDav Pilkey began the Dog Man series in 2016. The first book in the series begins with a “Behind the Scenes” section. Here, the two main characters from the Captain Underpants books, George Beard and Harold Hutchins, rediscover a comics series they wrote in Kindergarten called “Dog Man.” Now 4th graders, they decide to start the series again.

After this introduction, the main story begins when Officer Knight and his police dog Greg get injured in an explosion caused by Petey the Cat. To save them, doctors sew Greg the Dog’s head onto Officer Knight’s body, and Dog Man is born. His job is to fight crime and keep his city safe. Along the way, he makes friends and fights super villains.

Characters from the series include: Petey the Cat, the series antagonist who tries to take over the world; Sarah Hatoff, the world’s greatest reporter who assists Dog Man and records his adventures; Lil’ Petey, a clone of Petey the Cat who later becomes Cat Kid; Chief, the leader of the police department, who is grumpy but on Dog Man’s side; and Piggy, a villain and the leader of the FLEAS: the Fuzzy Little Evil Animal Squad.

For more information on the series, make sure to read this overview.

What We Know About Grime and Punishment

Dog Man: Grime and Punishment will be released on September 1, 2020. Like many other books in the series, the name involves a literary pun (you can teach your children about classic literature this way!). Very little information about the story is available, but we know Dog Man will face a new problem and he’ll need his pack, the Supa Buddies, to help him out. It looks like the plot begins when Dog Man gets in trouble for digging up the mayor’s roses. The book’s official trailer says, “This time Dog Man’s digging drives the meanie mayor mad. Luckily the Supa Buddies have the perfect plan to help the hound.” Take a look at the trailer for yourself!

Read More Books in the Dog Man Series

If you need to catch up on your Dog Man reading before the new book comes out, here are the other Dog Man books in order:

  • A Tale of Two Kitties (August 29, 2017)
  • Dog Man and Cat Kid (December 26, 2017)
  • Lord of the Fleas (August 28, 2018)
  • Brawl of the Wild (December 24, 2018)
  • For Whom the Ball Rolls (August 13, 2019)
  • Fetch-22 (December 9, 2019)

    After Grime and Punishment, the next Dog Man book will be published on March 23, 2021. Currently, no name for this book is available.

    What to Read After Dog Man

    While you wait for the new Dog Man release or after you’ve devoured it, make sure to pick up the Captain Underpants series by Dav Pilkey if you haven’t already. Currently, there are 12 books in this series plus three spin-offs. These include two Super Diaper Baby books and The Adventures of Ook and Gluk.

    Pilky’s Ricky Ricotta’s Mighty Robot series is another to check out.

    If you want to venture beyond the Dav Pilkey world, Book Riot has you covered: check out this list of 10 Funny Books Like Dog Man.

    Dog Man: Grime and Punishment isn’t out until September 1, but you can keep up with new books with our New Releases Index, available to Book Riot Insiders. You can sign up today at insiders.bookriot.com and enjoy a host of other bookish goodies with our online book club and more!