1. Animal welfare
2. Animals
3. Art techniques
4. Book design
5. Companionship
6. Courage
7. Death
8. Grief
9. History
10. Letters
11. Narrative techniques
12. Newspapers
13. Soldiers
14. Violence
15. War
16. WW1

Mark Wilson’s story, ‘Digger: the Dog Who Went to War,’ opens in 1916 on a farm west of Melbourne. There young Matthew has a much-loved pup named Digger. At 16 years of age, after completing his training as a soldier, Matthew boards a troop ship and smuggles Digger aboard to fight in World War 1. The reader accompanies Matthew on his overseas journey including life on board ship, training in England and his transfer to the Western Front in 1917. During the war, Matthew is a stretcher-bearer, and Digger helps him rescue the wounded. They form a strong bond.

Matthew’s focus in a final battle is saving Digger from the deadly gas before succumbing to the gas himself. Digger returns to Australia, again illegally, with members of the battalion. He spends his remaining life on the farm.

Wilson tells this story through both third person narrative and through his letters home to his sister, Anna. These letters contribute to the readers’ understanding of the personal experiences faced by soldiers at war. The strong bond between human and animal is especially moving, especially when both are under threat. The gasmask is the pivotal climax to this story, where both need it to survive and there is only one mask. This is a tale of love and devotion as well as the agonies of war.

Wilson’s wide-ranging images include wartime photographs and reproductions of newspaper articles. Double-page landscapes feature highly detailed and dramatic scenes of war.

This is a visually interesting and moving account of the realities of war. As in each of Mark Wilson’s series books inspired by personal accounts of wartime experiences, ‘Digger: the Dog Who Went to War’ captures both the human and dark sides of the war.

Young readers of this story might find it interesting to compare Mark Wilson’s version with a similar story commemorated in Australian war records and included in the Additional Resources below.

Animals in War is a series created by Mark Wilson.

1. ANZAC Stories Behind the Pages Exhibition Showcasing Australian and New Zealand Children’s War Books includes an interview with the author and background about ‘Digger: the Dog Who Went to War.’ http://anzacstoriesbehindthepages.blogspot.com/p/wilson-authorillustrator-link-to-where.html
2. The Sydney Morning Herald 20 Mar 2015 Stephanie Owen Reeder reviews six picture books including ‘Digger: the Dog Who Went to War’— Reviews include: ‘Two Pennies, from Gallipoli with Love, Anzac Ted, Lest We Forget, Digger: The Dog Who Went to War’. https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/books/reviews-two-pennies-from-gallipoli-with-love-anzac-ted-lest-we-forget-digger-the-dog-who-went-to-war-20150316-1413od.html
3. Reading Time 15 Dec 2015 review by Maureen Mann of ‘Digger: the Dog Who Went to War’. https://readingtime.com.au/digger-the-dog-who-went-to-war/
4. Monument Australia, ‘Digger the War Dog’ This account is a true story but it is about a different dog and soldier than those appearing in Mark Wilson’s book, ‘Digger.’ The memorial commemorates an alternate Digger, a dark brown and white bulldog who served with the Australian Imperial Force during World War One. https://monumentaustralia.org.au/themes/culture/animals/display/111379-digger-the-war-dog
5. Australian War Memorial ‘Digger 1914-1918’ https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/C1246162
6. Facebook ‘War Dog Digger’ offers a realistic re-enactment of a true but different dog named Digger. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nfJOG_5438M
7. Canberra City News 18 Aug 2021 by Nichole Overall ‘When Digger the Brave Bulldog Went to War’ offers a true story with some similarities to the story retold by Mark Wilson https://citynews.com.au/2021/when-digger-the-brave-bulldog-went-to-war/