- Comedy
- The Unpetables collection
- Ages 9–12
The Unpetables
Part of the collectionThe Unpetables→Best for 9-12 reluctant readers and comics fans who want a book that feels more like a dare than homework, in the vein of Dog Man and Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
- Books3
- Arcs1
- Span2023–2027
- StatusOngoing
The series
At a glance.
A hybrid comics-and-diary series by Dennis Messner, published by Top Shelf Productions, starring best friends Pigmund the pig and Lizardo the iguana, who flee Uncle Milo's petting zoo to work as freelance pets under one non-negotiable rule: NO MORE PETTING. Each book splices giddy paper-plate diary entries with fast black-and-white comics, packing a gag onto nearly every page while a warm odd-couple friendship holds the madcap show together. The retro comic-strip sensibility and relentless silliness make it a proven reluctant-reader hook, and the escalating adventures, from railway escapes to a secret-stuffed movie theatre, keep confident and hesitant readers alike turning pages.
Best for 9-12 reluctant readers and comics fans who want a book that feels more like a dare than homework, in the vein of Dog Man and Diary of a Wimpy Kid.
Primary themes
Overall tone
- Funny
- Silly
- Irreverent
- Adventurous
The books follow Pigmund and Lizardo's freelance-pet journey in loose sequence, so publication order (The Unpetables, then Unpetable in the City, then Call of the Weird) reads best, but each adventure is self-contained enough to enjoy on its own. Book three, Call of the Weird, is due in early 2027.
One arc
The shape of the series.
- IStandalone collection arcBooks 1–3 · 2023–2027Low sensitivity
Freelance-pet adventures
Three fast, silly diary-and-comics adventures following two freelance-pet escapees and their unbreakable no-petting rule.
The Unpetables runs as an episodic collection of self-contained freelance-pet capers rather than a tightly plotted saga. Each book keeps the same winning recipe, paper-plate diary entries, fast black-and-white comics and a joke on nearly every page, while sending Pigmund and Lizardo somewhere new: an escape by train and chickens, the chaos of BIG CITY CITY and a secret-stuffed movie theatre, and a water-tossed tale of hijinks and mystery. The giddy silliness always rides on top of a genuinely warm story about two mismatched friends who have each other's backs, which is what turns the gags into something children come back to.
Fit check
Right for your reader?
Where the series lands by age
- 1
- 3
- 5
- 7
- 9
- 11
- 13
- 15
- 17
- 19
- Best fit · 9–12
- Read aloud · 8–11
- Independent · 8–12
Reluctant-reader friendliness
Very high
Read-aloud quality
Workable
Adult crossover
Low
Grows with the reader
Not especially
Sensitivity envelope
Low overall, and consistent.
Where it sits
In conversation with other series.
About the author