This was an unexpected treat. I have not read any of the other Love series books, but this was a surprisingly moving story told solely through picture panels. I thoroughly enjoyed the glossary of animals in the back of the book, but I would have appreciated the animal names embedded in the panel where they were introduced. Thinking about sharing this story with an animal lover, I think having the animal name readily available would be helpful. I would have also loved a little information on the area where the story was taking place. It was beautiful scenery, but I think knowing a little more about the location would have improved the overall experience and ability to discuss the book with other readers.

Here's my breakdown:
Characters 4/5
Plot 3/5
Storytelling 4/5
Enjoyment 4/5
Atmosphere 3.5/5

I am definitely interested in checking out the other Love stories now after reading this one. I was amazed at the emotion conveyed in the story with the art work, and I would love to see what else the storywriters have to offer.

Typical for the series - gorgeous illustrations, no dialogue or text, light on story, good introduction to some animals in a specific region, in this case, Australia.

Two stars out of five because the file I was given never worked for me no matter what I tried, unfortunately. I really wanted to read this but life goes on and NetGalley makes me review it otherwise they hurt my rating so here is a short review. The v=cover artwork is beautiful and the majority seem to like this read so I would check it out if you're curious!

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* not what i would call disneyish, maybe pixar bc it made me cry lmfao but pretty violent for disney imo, not my up of tea

'Love: The Mastiff' by Frederic Brremaud and Federico Bertolucci is the fifth graphic novel in a series of wordless stories about animals trying to survive.

A mastiff and his master are out hunting when the master gets bitten by a snake. Now he must try to find his way home without running afoul of any of the creatures in the outback like the snake and a mean pack of dingoes. There are also other subplots going on like a platypus giving birth and different birds and animals.

I like this series and how it doesn't flinch from the cruelty of nature. The stories are told perfectly and the art is topnotch.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Diamond Book Distributors and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

Thank you to NetGalley and Diamond Book Distributors for the opportunity to read Love: The Mastiff. A beautifully drawn, wordless graphic novel, filled with lovely, subtle details. At times it almost felt like I was holding a naturalist's field notes or diary, the animal details were so wonderfully illustrated. The actions of the main canine characters seemed a bit anthropomorphized, but it did contribute to the tension and pacing of the story.

I really wasnt sure how I was going to understand and enjoy a graphic novel with no works but Love didnt need it.

This was beautiful.

🎵 it's the circle of life 🎶

And those snakes are gonna ruin it for you.


You don't need words the understand this story.

Love is a wordless graphic novel that are centered around wildlife. In Love: The Mastiff an Australian hunting dog finds himself alone in the outback when his master is bitten by a snake. This is volume 5.

First it is not easy to tell a story without any words at all, but Love does it beautifully. It reminds me a little of the graphic novel Saga of Rex. I was instantly drawn in by the art and can see why the Love series has won Eisners. The art feels less like a drawing and more like a nature documentary, it looks like you are looking at a beautiful photograph and because of this I was completely invested in what happened to the dog.

While it does have a similar feeling to the story as Homeward Bound, I didn't really notice until after I had finished. I will definitely be reading more from this series.

Creative Team:
Written by Frederic Brremaud
Illustrated by Federico Bertolucci
Translation, layout, and editing by Mike Kennedy

5 stars

Sort of an Australian circle of life story, follows several interlinked predator / prey stories during a short but eventful journey of a Mastiff harried by dingos. The art is absolutely gorgeous although the mastiff suffers from a bit too much of hero protagonist syndrome. On the whole though a really pretty engaging story even without any dialog!

I came across Frederic Brremaud's work when I read 'Brindle'. He did a great job of portraying the storyline with no text whatsoever. This book is part of the 'Love' series and I am interested in picking up the others.

Thank you NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to read this.

As always, the work of Frédéric Brrémaud and Federico Bertolucci is nothing short of STUNNING, BREATHTAKING, and CAPTIVATING. I've loved all the other Love stories, but this was really spoke to me because it focused on a dog, which is obviously one of humanity's most popular companions (if not the most popular), so I was riveted to find out where this injured Australian hunting dog's journey would take him.

This gave me some belated feels after I fully engrossed myself into everything. There's a strong sense of survival and love tied into this little story. The losses are grander than first impression suggests, seeing a feral dog among some dingoes might've brought some relief maybe even hope only for it all to go away. And that mastiff always ready to make sure nobody has to lose who they have to protect. And what's waiting for him after the end felt really heavy. God I didn't know if I would feel this much.

After his master is attacked by a snake while out in the Australian bush, the mastiff has to make his way home while confronting wild dogs, more snakes, and a rough environment. The artwork is gorgeous while the story line is choppy which interferes with the flow of the story. Still an interesting addition to this series.

I haven't read the others in the series. But I keep hearing about it so I decided to pick this up. And I totally loved it. From the graphic style to the story. Every bit of it. Artistically beautiful and heartbreaking too. I would love to give it a reread. And definitely, I'm going to read the others.
Thank you NetGalley and the publishers for providing this ARC.

I'm a big fan of Brremaud and Bertolucci. All the volumes of this series are wordless, the story is told only by images and the art is AMAZING! The books are all beautiful, I love them, but my favourite is the one with the fox.
They feature life and death, there is blood and violence, so they might be too much for children.

a review in headlines:

AUSTRALIA TO ANIMALS: TRY TO STAY ALIVE, CHUMPS!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-31_at_5.36.28_AM.png"/>

TOO MANY SNAKES! VIGILANTE MASTIFF VOWS TO REDUCE OUTBACK'S SNAKE POPULATION TO HONOR FALLEN MASTER

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-31_at_5.37.52_AM.png"/>

QUOKKAS: THEY'RE JUST LIKE US!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-06-03_at_7.48.37_AM.png"/>

this is the fifth book in the LOVE series, each installment a beautifully-illustrated wordless story focused on a particular animal; sort of a day-in-the-life-of-nature, depicting the challenges of surviving within various ecosystems: predator v prey, animal v man, nature v climate change, etc.

the struggle is real.

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-06-03_at_8.09.30_AM.png"/>

an argument can (and HAS) been made that brrémaud is more interested in drawing a bunch of different animals than with telling a specific story, but when you draw as well as he does, i think you should be able to do what you like without reproach.*

i mean, look at this platypus shaking itself off like a puppy!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-30_at_6.52.16_AM.png"/>

look at this mama kangaroo defending her joeys!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-31_at_5.35.03_AM.png"/>

look at this koala fighting off a bird!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-31_at_5.34.07_AM.png"/>

look at this baby-roo slapfight!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-31_at_5.35.52_AM.png"/>

look at this wombat getting its butt bitten by a dingo!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-05-31_at_5.37.13_AM.png"/>

there <i>is</i> a story here, but like all the other books, it strays from its titular creature and takes a widescreen approach, showing off the sometimes brutal way nature goes about its business.

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-06-03_at_7.46.10_AM.png"/>

like any nature documentary, they are always equal parts lovely and upsetting, and i, for one, never feel betrayed when brrémaud drifts from the ostensible center of the story to see what's happening elsewhere—detours are opportunities.

opportunities for quokkas!

<img src="https://hosting.photobucket.com/images/m545/kettincat/Screen_Shot_2021-06-03_at_7.49.02_AM.png"/>

* remembering only now that federico bertolucci is the one with the art credit on these, so i guess brrémaud just lounges around in his bathrobe waving his hands around magisterially, intoning "now we see the platypus rising from the water whilst a kestrel looks on," like sir david attenborough and bertolucci must scribble furiously to keep up. here, too, the struggle is real.

I can't access this file because the ONLY option is to download to my laptop, then Microsoft freaks out because it doesn't know what an ACSM file is. I tried converting to PDF, but that was also a disaster. Why, oh why, couldn't this book be something to download to Shelf or Kindle? So sad, because I was so excited about this book. It has such fantastic reviews.

this was brutal but wow, was the art ever nice. i don't know that i would give this to kids, but it was a quick nature documentary in graphic novel form and i liked it.

Beautifully illustrated comic about a mastiff who must make his way through the Australian outback after his owner dies while out hunting.
The story speaks strong and clear, despite there being not a single word of text on-page. I was surprised by how emotional the story made me feel, even though it doesn't always solely focus on the dog, but also other animals roaming the outback.
I also really appreciated the couple pages about climate change at the back of the book!