Mega-Dogs of New Kansas

by Dan Jolley, Dan Jolley

The story of a girl and her dog--in space.

Sienna Barlow loves nothing more than riding around New Kansas on top of her mega-dog, Gus. He's one of the massive pooches protecting the human settlers of a strange planet. In fact, Sienna connects better with Gus than with other kids. So when a visiting official threatens to shut down the mega-dog program, Sienna sneaks off with her best friend. After she, Gus, and a stowaway crash their escape ship, they discover a danger to every human in their community--and launch a wild plan to save New Kansas.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Middle Grade, Science Fiction, Animals, Fiction, Space, Childrens

144 pages, Paperback

Published October 6, 2020

Reviews

[Chad]

A sci-fi comic for kids where domesticated dogs have been engineered to be the sizes of horses and they help shepherd these giant birds on a new space colony. The little girl suffers from severe anxiety and will only talk to her dog, Gus, and her mom. She runs away after a visit by a bureaucrat goes horribly wrong. Most of this is the girl, Gus, and a boy last in the wilderness of this alien planet. The art is rudimentary but tells the story.

[Melki]

This was an okay action/adventure graphic that seems like it's trying just a little to hard to have broad appeal. It also had the feel of a sequel; perhaps a little more exposition would have helped. I've cataloged this for the library where I work, and I'll be interested to see how it does with the younger set.



And, naturally, I would have preferred more DOGS.

[Geoff]

A cute but somewhat didactic kid's graphic novel about friendship, empathy, and avoiding overt environmental destruction. And large dogs! The plot is somewhat simplistic, but the lessons are good. And you can't ever have enough giant dog stories.

**Thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

[Radwa]

English Review Below.

قصة مصورة بسيطة ومناسبة للأطفال ومبتدئي قراءة قصص الخيال العلمي المصورة. انجذبت إليها في البداية بسبب الكلاب في العنوان. تدور الأحداث على كوكب آخر سكنه البشر، وعلى هذا الكوكب، توجد كلاب ضخمة الحجم وقد دربها البشر لتكون أشبه بالحراس والمساعدين والحماة من مخلوقات الكوكب الأخرى.
نتتبع في قصتنا طفلين وكلبهما الضخم، اللذين يحلون اللغز وينقذان الكوكب من السحالي العملاقة.

A very basic graphic novel, suitable for children getting into sci-fi and graphic novels.
I was interested in this graphic novel, because it involves dogs. It's set in another planet which the humans have colonized, and on this planet, there's mega-dogs, which are super-sized dogs, who work as guards and helpers. We follow two kids, who with the help of one of the mega-dogs manage to save the colony from huge lizards.
For me, it was too convenient and there was no character depth, bu I think it'd work well for a beginner reader.

I thank Netgalley for the digital ARC.

[Reading_ Tamishly]

A good read for graphic novel beginners.

The art is clean and has the beginner's charm.

The story is about Sienna Barlow who loves having her megadogs pets around while the authorities aren't sure if the genetic manipulation of such creation would have to be approved or banned.

The representation of anxiety is well done. The characters have a voice strong enough. And the art sequence done well.

However, I wanted more from the plot and the ending.

It ends well and happy. It's just that I wanted something different, something more adventurous. Things tend to get a bit too convenient for the characters at times.

I appreciate the different artstyle.

Thanks NetGalley for the ARC.

[Laura]

Cute funny story about a kid and her giant dog on a planet somewhere. Her father is the mayor, and her mother breeds the dogs, and they have to impress the Vice President of Production for North American Triumvirate (NAT), the company that is funding the outpost.

Sienna loves the large dogs, and when a misunderstanding causes them to be locked up, she breaks her favorite free, and high jinks ensue.

Drawings are a little crude, and the story is written as though told from a kid's point of view, but all in all makes sense, and kids are sure to enjoy it.

Thanks to Netgalley for making this book available for an honest review.

[Cale]

This is a pretty cute story about a very shy girl, her massive dog, a new boy that causes a disaster, and how they all end up saving their colony. It sounds a bit random but it works well in the story. Sienna's social issues aren't played up too much, but they also aren't overcome without some work. Kevin starts off annoying but quickly develops into a more complex character. And Gus is a really big dog that does what dogs do. The art and story are definitely youth oriented, but it works for older audiences as long as you're not looking for too much depth. It's a nice enough book, but nothing to go out of your way for.

[Pam]

Graphic Novel
I received an electronic ARC from Lerner Publishing Group through NetGalley.
Set on a different planet in the future. A colony from Earth is working to raise food to send back to the home planet. Sienna loves her mega dog, Gus, and goes everywhere with him. She suffers from anxiety so struggles to speak to other people. Disaster strikes when Gus acts out during the Vice President's visit and the VP threatens to destroy all of the mega-dogs. The adventure continues as Sienna, Gus and a new friend, Kevin steal a space shuttle and attempt to fly across the planet.
The characters are a bit rough and share most of the same few facial expressions. The background scenery is fairly typical foreign planet style. The plot is fairly straightforward and readers will probably figure out the ending early in the story, but it flows well and is a fun read.

[Becky B]

Sienna is the daughter of a scientist and lives with her mom on the planet New Kansas. Sienna’s mom and other scientists are trying to set up a stable settlement. Her mom breeds mega-dogs to help defend a local bird species’ eggs for export from huge native lizard-like creatures called spinners. Sienna loves the dogs, especially Gus. Other kids on the base think Sienna is stuck up because she doesn’t talk to them, but they don’t know that her tongue gets tied at just the thought of talking to them. Thinking they can teach a stuck up girl a lesson, two boys plot a prank for the Vice President’s arrival that goes very wrong. Desperate to save her best friend, Sienna resorts to drastic measures to save Gus. Meanwhile, the settlement is firing up the new power plant the Vice President is there to inspect.

I really liked this adventure with Sienna and Gus on New Kansas. The boy who played the prank on her, Kevin, accidentally joins Sienna and Gus’s escape and thus they get to know each other better. There was some very good personal growth on both of their parts, and I liked the resolution the book brought in their relationship. They provide a good example of how to make things right after wrongs done. The Vice President was quite the jerk, all about the money and not an ounce of care for the people or animals. He’s lucky he was in a kids’ graphic novel and not an adult one or I think he’d have ended up a spinner snack instead of the end he got in here. I really liked the color tones chosen for the artwork as they helped convey the other-ness of the world. There was a good resolution to the various plot points introduced in this story, but I’m hoping for more stories of Sienna, Gus, and Kevin on New Kansas. There’s lots of potential for more adventures in this world Jolley has created. Highly recommended to graphic novel fans, animal lovers, and fans of scifi adventures on new planets.

Notes on content [based on the ARC]: No language issues. No sexual content. There are some potentially perilous situations but no people or animals are hurt.

I received an ARC of this title from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Shazza Maddog]

Found while I was searching for another book on the library website, I decided to take a chance on this one.

Sienna lives on New Kansas in the year 2138 with her mother, the trainer for the Mega-Dogs. Mega-Dogs were created (bred?) to watch over the flock of native birds (kind of ostrich-like), whose eggs are harvested for return to Earth to feed the people there. The total North American continent (Canada, the U.S., and Mexico) have joined together in a triumverate during this time and host farm colonies on different planets.

New Kansas has a new power plant that will be opening soon and everyone's excited for it - there won't be rolling brown outs and there will be unlimited hot water. Sienna doesn't really care about that though, a new kid, Kevin, tried to talk to her and she froze up as she always does due to her anxiety. Kevin takes it to mean she's stuckup and decides to get back at her in the worst way possible - by pranking her Mega-Dog, Augustus (Gus) by dropping a biting ant onto him during a "get to know you" walking meeting with the Vice President of the triumverate. Gus, due to his size, destroys a vehicle and is contained with the possibility of all the Mega-Dogs being euthanized and any further breedings shut down.

Sienna can't let that happen to her best friend so she sneaks into the holding facility and steals Gus - as well as a planet skimmer - but Kevin follows her and stows away on board. He frightens Sienna enough she crashes the skimmer, leaving Gus to save their lives. And the big dog continues to do so, from facing down the rippers - giant lizard-y critters always after the farm birds - to a giant squid to leading the kids across the desert to home (which...they were out in the desert I could swear 400 miles but they got back really quickly for walking and sometimes riding on Gus).

Will the Vice President see the error in his ways or will he continue to say the Mega-Dogs are a failure and need to be destroyed?

Also, I really hate the V.P. as he's exactly the way every politician I've ever had contact with is - not taking into consideration the local views and knowledge and assuming he knows best....

Good for ages 8-12 and maybe younger or older, depending, but that's what I'd guess the age range was for Sienna and Kevin.

[Shelley]

I ended up liking this better than I thought I would. Mainly I only liked it because the idea of having giant dogs is pretty cool. I also love how the two kids grew, learned from their mistakes (or flaws) and became friends. It was fun to see that friendship grow.

Other than that this really wasn’t my cup of tea. First of all I’m really not into science fiction, but second of all because there was no world building (you are kind of just thrown into this world without any backstory) so it was kind of confusing at first. For example, I thought this story takes place in a whole different world or universe, until they mentioned earth later on, I didn’t really understand why the power plant was off to begin with, and I also wasn’t sure why the dogs eyes would glow red or yellow, they almost seemed part cyborg? There was just so much that was never explained. I just felt like I was kind of thrown into the setting without any explanation.

[Drew Ising]

I liked the message in the story, and recognize it is always going to be tough to fit a complete arc into a one-shot graphic novel, but it is just SUCH a weird start to this book. There is a wholly unnecessary capitalist-swine antagonist, who could have very easily just been combined into a single character with the mayor. Then they could have used those 8-10 pages to flesh out the story of the antagonist or focus more totally rad dogs. 🤷 But I'm not a writer, so don't take my word for it.

The story is really very sweet, and with a name like "Mega Dogs from New Kansas" there was a 0% chance it was going to get passed both my daughter and me. 😅 And with a giant Berner, my wife may even get trapped by this one. I am interested in my daughter's opinion, as an anxious girl who sometimes responds by going silent. I think she may connect with Sienna more than I did.

[Wayne McCoy]

“Mega-Dogs of New Kansas“ by Dan Jolley with illustrations by Jacques Khouri is a graphic novel about a young girl, and her giant mutant dog on a new planet,

Sienna Barlow loves riding around her new home on the planet New Kansas on her dog, Gus. She’s also extremely shy and only talks to her dog and her mom. When another boy thinks she’s stuck up, he plays a prank on Gus which backfires. Now Sienna, Gus, and the boy who played the prank have to find a way back home. Along the way they find secrets about themselves and their new home which may save the planet.

I like this middle grade comic for kids about domesticated dogs on a new planet. Giant lizards are fun too and the premise isn’t too bad. I like the idea of these two strangers becoming friends.

[Heidi]

This was a fun stand alone science fiction graphic novel. It’s got some scariness and tension but nothing that wouldn’t be fine for the right age kid. Probably around age 8 give or take. The colony world uses giant mutant dogs to defend their base and flocks from predatory lizards. One of the children of the planet has profound anxiety and one of the mutant dogs is sort of her service animal.
The plot of the story is pushed along by kids being kids but learning from their mistakes. The adult villain also admits to his errors. The only thing I might complain about is the art is a little retro. It’s a stylistic choice that works with the story though

[Wina]

3.5 stars for this sci-fi graphic novel for ages 8-11. Here's what Kirkus reviews has to say, and I just pasted it in. "Jolley’s graphic offering is very clever, with its accessible worldbuilding abetted by Khouri’s eye-catching sepia-hued illustrations. Sienna’s social anxiety is palpable on the page, and her struggles are handled in an approachable way. Sienna has olive skin and straight, dark hair; Kevin presents White. Secondary and background characters are racially diverse.
An inventive intergalactic romp." It's a quick read, and I enjoyed it. Adventure! Reminded me of an old serial or an episode of Johnny Quest.

[Heidi Doyle]

Sienna has difficulty talking to people, it no problem talking to her dog, a larger than usual Mega-Dog. The dogs have been genetically engineered to be bigger so they can protect the humans from Rippers on this earth-like planet. Can Sienna and her dog save the planet or will they end up grounded for disobeying orders. This sci-fi graphic novel has a little bit of everything, friendship, adventure, humor, and of course, a big friendly dog.

[Jessica]

I will tell you that the cover threw me off reading this for a while, but it ended up being one of the best graphic novels. It had a shy girl that had anxiety issues. It took place on a planet close to earth where a colony was trying to start up. There are big lizards and big dogs-- Mega dogs that protect the humans. It is a really wonderful story. Graphics inside the book are better than the cover.

[Bethe]

Intrigued by the mega dogs (which isn’t actually explained what makes them mega other than size) I picked this out of the new book box. Predictable story line of girl with anxiety who connects better with dogs, mean official, scary sci fi monsters, neatly wrapped ending. Not a fan of the illustration style, but I liked the color palate for a remote planet outpost.

[Mark Glover]

This is a great kids sci-fi story with lots of action, fun characters, and a fast-moving plot.It was a great one for reluctant readers. I really appreciated the colour palette and style, which gave it a unique look. A great graphic novel for all ages.

[Amanda Lee]

Good graphic reader for kids who like adventures, animals, and outer space.

[DebbieG]

I can now say that I have read an entire Graphic Novel, and liked it! Even though this was recommended for children, my interest was caught by the sepia-hued illustrations.

[Robin West]

I loved this book. It was fun and an adventure. It dealt with social anxiety in an amazing way. Highly recommend. I would love to see more adventures in New Kansas.

[Carissa]

Fun sci-fi story about a colony on a new planet.

[Kathleen]

A great book for kids who love dogs!

[Travis]

A book that I picked up because it looked fun. Sadly it just felt disappointing and rather lackluster. I suppose it works as sci-fi adventure story aimed at kids, but nothing beyond that.

[Sarah]

really not what I expected at all, but I guess that's on me.

the people r ugly lol

not an awful story, but not a great one either. it was okay.

[J.D. DeHart]

Of course, the title of this book drew me right in. What I found was an original book with enjoyable images, artistic talent, and storytelling that fleshes out a strange new world. Recommended for graphic novel/comics enthusiasts.

[Theediscerning]

Well, this impressed me a lot more than I thought it would, given that title. On a terraformed planet elsewhere, the colony is getting a new power plant up and running, but the guy behind that has decided to cancel the Mega-Dog project our heroine's mother runs, the beasties concerned being horse-sized canines who protect the local emu-type things while they're laying eggs on the farm. Our girl nicks a space craft to zoom off with her favourite mega-dog, just because – and lo and behold, she both has a major anxiety about speaking to boys, and a young male stowaway too. They land in a place of great peril – but find the real danger is just about to start attacking the colony they've left behind…

Yes, it sounds a little simple, and yes it sounds a little cheesy, but this really worked for me, and I was not the target audience by any stretch. I liked the fact there was a human issue to be had, with the girl's anxiety and shyness well handled, considering how badly it could have scuppered the sci-fi. The action elements are to the fore, and while some of them are over with very quickly (a flight from some nasty creatures that's over in about two panels, a river crossing we get to see half of and nothing else), that economy only helps the story be a full, and fully entertaining, one. So often you come across comic books for this audience that still almost aim to talk down, and belittle the reader with something stupid and throwaway and not a patch on more mature comics. This is not one of those books – it's really classily, and classically, handled. I really liked it – four and a half stars.

[Joy (Books with Joy)]

Mega-Dogs of New Kansas is an endearing science fiction novel where we follow Sienna and her mega-dog, Gus. The new kid, Alex, misunderstands Sienna’s silence and pranks her in retaliation. However, the prank leads to a disaster. Upon discovering a threat to cancel the mega-dog program, Sienna decides to act. However, her actions lead to discovering another problem…

Despite not being the target audience, I enjoyed this graphic novel immensely. I adore big dogs and I loved them in this story. The narration is compelling and accompanied by gorgeous illustrations. The art style has a retro feel, complementing the story well whilst keeping the audience engaged.

Also, I liked how this story addresses and explores Sienna’s shyness and anxiety. The story highlights that people can learn from their mistakes and that progress is good.

Overall, this was an adorable and fun read. I’d recommend this graphic novel to children ages 7 and up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

[Andréa]

Note: I received a digital review copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley.