Dogsbody
#2004.10 of 664 ranked universes · full ranking
Books 1 book Status Complete 1975 Reading commitment Low Diana Wynne Jones Last reviewed 2026-09-06
Overview
Sirius, the brightest star in the sky, is falsely condemned for a murder he did not commit and sentenced to live out a mortal life on Earth in a dog’s body. Reborn as a puppy in an Irish farmhouse, he grows up an ordinary dog while slowly recovering fragments of his old, cosmic memory — and must track down a lost, dangerous artefact called the Zoi before his dog’s short lifetime runs out, if he ever hopes to clear his name and return to the sky.
Mythic fantasy · For Middle grade
Core Canon: Reading Order (1 work) counts toward ranking
Dogsbody (1975) core · 4.10 (7,455 ratings)
Quick answers
- How many books are in Dogsbody? Dogsbody's Core Canon is 1 book.
- Is Dogsbody finished? Complete (1975).
- How much reading does Dogsbody take? Low reading commitment (estimated from 1 Core Canon book · ~272 pages).
- How is Dogsbody ranked? #200 of 664 ranked universes on this site, based on 7,455 reader ratings across 1 Core Canon book. See the full ranking for how this is calculated.
Why is it ranked #200?
Ranked #200 of 664 ranked universes.
- Average reader rating of 4.10 across 1 core book.
- A smaller readership (7,455 ratings), so the score carries less weight of numbers.
- Less than 0.01 behind #199, Under the Whispering Door (a finer tie-break level decides the order).
- Below the top-10 average of 4.45.
- A single standalone novel: ranked on that one book alone.
Why explore this universe?
Highly rated · 1 book · Complete · 7k ratings · Ranks #200 overall
Good choice if you want a quick, low-commitment mythic fantasy universe that's already finished, so there's no wait for the next book.
Reading order
A single Core Canon work: no sequencing question to resolve.
Awards (verified)
- No award recognition has been found for this title.
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Official resources
Research details
Ranking metrics: weighted average 4.10 across 7,455 ratings on 1 Core Canon book. See Why is it ranked here? above for the full breakdown, or the full ranking.
How do we know this?
Admission: Dogsbody (Diana Wynne Jones) accepted 2026-09-06
Sources: (see source tier definitions)
- Dogsbody (novel) - Wikipedia Tier 2
Last reviewed: 2026-09-06
Rule: Core Canon = the single 1975 novel. It is a standalone story with no sequel or companion work.