Pocket Genius Dogs: Facts at Your Fingertips

by D.K. Publishing

Ideal for every young dog lover, Pocket Genius: Dogs is packed with information that makes learning about dogs even more exciting. How did dogs evolve? Find out! Read about dog anatomy, their senses, and their intelligence. With 194 catalog entries of individual dog breeds from Great Danes to tiny terriers, Pocket Genius: Dogs details each group from working dogs to companion dogs and explains domestication and breed classifications.

Redesigned in paperback, DK's best-selling Pocket Genius series is now available in an engaging compact and economical format that is ideal for both browsing and quick reference for use in school and at home. Catalog entries packed with facts provide at-a-glance information, while locator icons offer immediately recognizable references to aid navigation and understanding, and fact files round off the book with fun facts such as record breakers and timelines. Each pocket-size encyclopedia is filled with facts on subjects ranging from animals to history, cars to dogs, and Earth to space and combines a child-friendly layout with engaging photography and bite-size chunks of text that will encourage and inform even the most reluctant readers.

Genres: Animals, Nonfiction, Reference

160 pages, Paperback

First published June 2, 2014

About the author

Dorling Kindersley (DK) is a British multinational publishing company specializing in illustrated reference books for adults and children in 62 languages. It is part of Penguin Random House, a consumer publishing company jointly owned by Bertelsmann SE & Co. KGaA and Pearson PLC. Bertelsmann owns 53% of the company and Pearson owns 47%.

Established in 1974, DK publishes a range of titles in genres including travel (including Eyewitness Travel Guides), arts and crafts, business, history, cooking, gaming, gardening, health and fitness, natural history, parenting, science and reference. They also publish books for children, toddlers and babies, covering such topics as history, the human body, animals and activities, as well as licensed properties such as LEGO, Disney and DeLiSo, licensor of the toy Sophie la Girafe. DK has offices in New York, London, Munich, New Delhi, Toronto and Melbourne.

Source: Wikipedia.

Reviews

[Sami]

Non-fiction Twin Text Entry #4:

Klimo, K. (2013). Dog diaries #1: Ginger. New York: Random House.

I think "Dog Diaries" is a perfect title to pair with "Dogs" because of the formatting of the series. "Dog Diaries" is full of many different stories, all about a different dog breed. I thought this could go well with "Dogs" because it is formatted in a similar way. A child could read "Dog Diaries", and search in the non-fiction title for more information about the particular dog breed they're reading about. I think many students would find this fun, and it's a good way to learn more information about dogs.

[miffythereader]

Didn’t get to post a review for most of what I read, but this is a recent one. Highly enjoyable.

[Lone Wolf]

This is a nice little book of dog breeds and fun facts. It doesn’t contain every single breed, which is understandable given that different breeds are recognised in different countries. It also incorrectly classifies the Doberman as a hound.

[Lily Taylor's Version ✨]

Detailed really good for dog lovers.

[Becky Rice]

Pretty good little book. It has good information about dogs and dog breeds. If you want a quick intro to dogs I recommend this. I also recommend it to older children.

[Emily]

I really liked that this one had a lot of international breeds I wasn't familiar with.

[Peacegal]

This guide to dog breeds is laid out in an appealing magazine-style format and boasts lots of color photos. Along with a Kennel Club-style introduction to the many breeds and classes of canis familiaris, we also get some general info on the natural history, behavior, and abilities of dogs.

Not included in this book's scope is information about dog welfare issues, dog rescue/adoption, or a lot of info pertaining to everyday care. One excellent takeaway from this book is that different breeds were created for different reasons, and behavior, care requirements, and abilities vary widely throughout the breed classes. Despite what some unscrupulous pet stores and shelters say, not every breed is right for every person.

This book was published in the UK, so it doesn't include much of the promotion and whitewashing of higher-risk breeds that has pervaded American dog literature in recent years, including that created for children. It does, however, claim that the Rottweiler "doesn't deserve its bad reputation," despite its status as the second most common type of dog involved in fatal attack incidents, and the Dogo Argentino, a large fighting breed created by crossing pit bulls with mastiffs, is simply identified as having a "gentle and loyal nature," despite it being, once again, a higher-risk animal whose owners should be fully aware and prepared to train and contain safely.