SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About/Contact
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Manga
  • All Ages
  • Young Adult
  • Interviews
  • News

August 22, 2019 by Lori Henderson

Review: Science Comics: Dogs, From Predator to Protector

August 22, 2019 by Lori Henderson   Leave a Comment

Science Comics: Dogs, From Predator to Protector
By Andy Hirsch
All Ages (9-13)
First Second, October 2017

Everyone loves dogs. Most people have known or grown up with dogs. But what do we really know about the animal we call “man’s best friend?” Science Comics has come up with the answer to that, by introducing a dog named Rudy who loves his person and chasing balls and who can also travel through time.

Rudy greets the reader after arriving at the park. He starts out by explaining the relationship of dogs to wolves through taxonomy, the practice of naming and classification. The discovery of a ball sends him off on his journey through time, as he chases it back to 25,000 BP, to the dawn of dog history. From here, he follows the ball, going through the history of genetics and how genes are inherited. This moves into evolution and natural selection, and how the trait to be less scared of humans changed wolves’ temperament and appearance to become dogs. Through this domestication, dogs became the useful and faithful companions we see today.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

The story starts out spending a lot of time on the science of genetics, going into detail starting with Mendel’s experiments with sweet peas, explaining genetic inheritance, and using punnett squares to show dominance. Rudy does his best to keep it interesting, but it is a lot of information, and it takes awhile to get through it as well as explaining the domestication process before it gets back to looking at dogs specifically.

Once it does, the story picks up, going over how different and extensive a dog’s senses are and why they sniff backsides. It also looks at dogs’ intelligence and how their basic predatory instinct was used by humans to turn them into herders and hunters. It then starts talking about breeds, coming back around to genes and artificial selection, and how breeds can have personality traits, but how a dog is raised has a bigger effect on their personality. It ends with looking at the way a dog communicates both with humans and other dogs.

Science Comics: Dogs: From Predator to Protector is a fun and entertaining look at these animals. It goes in depth into the science to explain how dogs came to be our companions, and that it’s more predisposed than learned. Older elementary and middle school students will find the science more interesting than younger readers, but readers of all ages will appreciate the information about dogs themselves. And Rudy does get his ball back.

Filed under: Graphic Novels

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
All AgesDogsFirst SecondgeneticsScience Comics

About Lori Henderson

Lori Henderson is a mother of two teenage daughters and an avid reader. She blogs about manga at her personal blog Manga Xanadu as well as contributing and editing for Manga Village. She blogs about all things fandom (mainly Doctor Who) at her other personal blog Fangirl Xanadu. She's been at it so for over 5 years now and counting!

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

January 2023

Exclusive Announcement: Art Baltazar's YAHGZ | News

by Lori Henderson

January 2023

Young Agatha Christie | Review

by Lori Henderson

January 2023

Andy Warner's Oddball Histories: Pests and Pets | Review

by Lori Henderson

January 2023

My Sister, the Cat, vol. 1 | Review

by Lori Henderson

January 2023

Recent Graphic Novel Deals, Early Jan 2023 | News

by Lori Henderson

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

One Star Review, Guess Who? (#181)

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

That Flag: An Interview with Tameka Fryer Brown

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Monkey Prince Vol. 1: Enter the Monkey | Review

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Heavy Medal

Heavy Medal Mock Newbery Readers’ Poll Results

by Steven Engelfried

Teen Librarian Toolbox

The Value of Innocence for BIPOC Students, a guest post by David Mura

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

Looking Ahead: Our 2023 Preview

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Author Jim Murphy Has Died; Kaepernick, Scholastic Publishing Graphic Memoir; and More | News Bites

15 Returning Faces for Graphic Novels Shelves | Series Update

Graphic Novels Extend Their Frontiers

SPONSORED

From 'Gender Queer' to ‘New Kid', Graphic Novels Are Targeted by Censors

A Starter Manga Set: 15 Titles for Children and Tweens

Commenting for all posts is disabled after 30 days.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023