Books by splitShops

Breaking the Chain: The Guard Dog Story - Hardcover

$22.99

Tax not included.
Shipping calculated at checkout.

Out of stock

Order Note:

Purchase Information

Shipping charges, applicable taxes, the final order total, and available payment methods are shown during checkout before payment. Delivery timing varies by item and fulfillment origin. Standard U.S. returns are by mail for eligible new, unopened items within 30 days of carrier delivery. Customers pay standard return shipping; there is no restocking fee. Approved refunds are issued within 5 business days after the return is received and inspected. Standard exchanges are not offered.

Cindi Book items have a flat $9.99 shipping charge. Shopify Collective items use shipping rates set by the supplier. Orders containing items from different fulfillment sources may include more than one shipping charge. Your full shipping total is shown at checkout before payment.

Return eligibility is subject to the full policy. Opened, read, or unsealed books with broken seals or visible wear are final sale. Digital downloads, gift cards, and personalized products are non-refundable. Original shipping charges are not refunded for standard returns. Contact us within 7 days of delivery about damaged, defective, or incorrect items.

by Patrick McDonnell (Author), Rob Thomas (Introduction by), Marisol Thomas (Introduction by)

Instant national bestseller! From the award-winning syndicated comic strip Mutts, the long-awaited "Guard Dog" story is now collected and presented in full color along with supplementary material, timed for the 30th anniversary

Guard Dog made his debut in the Mutts comic strip in 1995 and quickly became one of the strip's most beloved characters. As a chained dog longing for freedom, he's played an important role in raising awareness about the cruelty of tethering and has inspired countless Mutts readers to become involved in animal welfare.

In October 2023, nearly three decades after his debut, Guard Dog's freedom story began to unfold in newspapers and online. After being abandoned by his owner, left alone and suffering, Guard Dog was discovered by his animal friends Mooch and Earl, and ultimately rescued by Doozy, a kindly neighborhood girl, and Ozzie, Earl's guardian. After years of visiting Guard Dog to provide him with comfort and support, Doozy adopted him--marking the end of a long life of neglect and the beginning of one filled with love and safety.

The story line concludes with Guard Dog not only getting a new home but also a new name--Sparky--a nod to Patrick McDonnell's greatest artistic inspiration, Charles M. Schulz, creator of Peanuts.

As Guard Dog found his happy ending, McDonnell received requests from readers all over the world, many of whom had been invested in Guard Dog's plight for decades, hoping that the long-anticipated story would be made into a book. This collected volume answers the demands of those passionate readers.

Brought to life with Patrick McDonnell's warm and intimate art, and featuring the complete story, now in color for the first time, Breaking the Chain is an emotionally resonant vignette whose grounding in the real-life animal neglect issues that affect millions of chained dogs worldwide will move both long-time Mutts fans and first-time readers.

Author Biography

Patrick McDonnell is the bestselling author, illustrator, playwright, painter, and creator of the comic strip Mutts, which appears in more than 700 newspapers around the world. He has received numerous awards internationally, including a Caldecott Honor and the Reuben, the highest honor given by the National Cartoonists Society. He is the author of The Art of Nothing (Abrams ComicArts, 2019) and The Super Hero's Journey (Marvel Arts, 2023). He lives in New Jersey.

Number of Pages: 192
Dimensions: 1 x 6.9 x 8.1 IN
Illustrated: Yes
Publication Date: September 03, 2024

Pay with

  • Amazon
  • Apple Pay
  • Diners Club
  • Discover
  • Google Pay
  • Mastercard
  • PayPal
  • Shop Pay
  • Visa

Available payment methods and your final total are shown at checkout before payment.

$22.99