All dogs deserve a happy ending, no matter their story. They can be fearless, brilliant, and loving. And unlike those pesky human characters, they won’t betray your trust in a surprise plot twist.
But authors know that we want to bond with our fictional canine companions, and all too often, those dogs end up in mortal peril. Like Wallace Wallace thinks in Gordon Korman’s “No More Dead Dogs”: Why do dogs always die at the end?
So here’s our promise (and spoiler warning!) for this booklist: There might be danger, adventure, and heavy emotional moments in these books, but these dogs always make it to the end.
Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo
Kate DiCamillo’s Because of Winn-Dixie is a short, masterfully written tale about how dogs pull people together. Ten-year-old India Opal Buloni’s life is a mess of problems: she just moved to Florida, she’s afraid to ask her turtle-like father about what happened with her mom, and she has no friends. By chance, she finds a dog making a mess in the grocery store and claims the pup is hers. Everything changes… and of course, it’s because of Winn-Dixie.
Tomorrow by Damian Dibben
A time-travelling, immortal dog searching for his lost master through historical Europe? Say no more. Reading stories from the canine viewpoint may be unfamiliar, but if you find that you enjoy seeing the world from a dog’s mind, check out our other recent reading list: An Animal’s Perspective.
Fairy Tale by Stephen King
Fairy Tale is one of prolific horror novelist Stephen King’s newest titles, and it delves deep into the well of fantasy. On the surface, Charlie Reade is a normal high school kid, but he carries the weight of many problems: his mother died in a hit-and-run accident, and grief drove his father to drink. On top of that, he just inherited a mysterious house from the recluse with a big dog at the top of the hill… surely there isn’t a portal to a dangerous world in the shed out back, is there?
Dog On It by Spencer Quinn
The canine narrator of Dog On It, Chet, is a police school flunkee who works alongside a down-on-his-luck private investigator, Bernie. The pair are set to investigate the disappearance of a teenage girl, but when she shows up and then disappears again, the two detectives are sure that there is something more going on. This is the first in a series of mystery books featuring both Chet and Bernie, so read on for more good-cop dog-cop action!
No Better Friend: one man, one dog, and their extraordinary story of courage and survival in WWII by Robert Weintraub
OK, a little bit of a technicality here: this is a nonfiction book about Judy, a purebred pointer, who met flight technician Frank Williams in a World War II internment camp in the Pacific. Judy has since passed away in the 80+ years since WWII, but rest assured, it was of old age. This is the incredible story of Judy’s survival in the midst of war, and how she became the beacon of hope for Frank and the rest of the prisoners of war.
The Happy Ever After Playlist by Abby Jimenez
Artist Sloan Monroe finds a lost puppy named Tucker, who jumps into her car (and her heart). After weeks of not hearing back from Tucker’s original owner and taking care of the puppy herself, a musician named Jason finally reaches out… and he wants Tucker back. The publisher’s summary says it best: this is the tale of how one puppy brings together two perfect strangers.
Hounded by Kevin Hearne
Hounded is the first in Kevin Hearne’s Iron Druid Chronicles fantasy series, and it features a snarky two-thousand-year-old druid just trying to live his best life alongside his talking Irish Wolfhound, Oberon. Fans of the Dresden Files would find a lot of familiarity (and a lot of fun) in this book series.
A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A. Fletcher
This is a post-apocalyptic tale of Griz, a boy who lives with his parents and their two dogs on an island after the world went to ruin. But then, someone came to steal his dogs. Be warned: this book is packed to the brim with suspense and heart-wrenching moments (including non-dog animal death), but the world-building and conclusion will surely deliver.
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
To try to simplify and summarize this book wouldn’t do it justice, but we can at least give you a hook. January Scaller is the ward of the wealthy Mr. Locke, who has a mansion full of wondrous items. Naturally, she stumbles upon a mysterious book that opens up an entirely new world, full of new encounters and experiences. (And of course, you can’t forget the brave, steadfast, very good dog: Bad.)
Olive, Mabel, & Me by Andrew Cotter
We’ll wrap up our list with a lighthearted collection of life stories about sports commentator Andrew Cotter and his two dogs, Olive and Mabel. The two dogs went viral in 2020 when Cotter narrated them eating breakfast as if it were a competition, and their humorous escapades spiraled from there. This is a laugh-out-loud nonfiction memoir, perfect for filling up on your daily dose of cute dogs doing funny things.