Dog Only Knows: The Dog Portraits of Alison Friend

by Alison Friend

From the artist Alison Friend, a collection of 125 unconventional dogs posing for traditional oil portraits

Welcome to Alison Friend’s world of dogs—a collection of playful, mischievous, and quirky dogs posing for oil portraits in a traditional style, all while eating their favorite foods, wearing their favorite outfits, showing off their favorite hobbies, and more.
 
Meet Dave, the Boston terrier who loves gummy bears. Pip, the Border Collie who’d rather solve her Rubik’s Cube than herd sheep. Johan Sebastian Bark, piano aficionado. Debbie, a Chihuahua sipping a raspberry mojito. And Super Dog, dressed in a mask and cape, whose superpower is hearing snacks being opened from a mile away.
 
With dogs of every personality, every breed, and every interest, and with witty captions accompanying each portrait, Dog Only Knows is a collection full of humor and charm on every page.

Genres: Art, Nonfiction, Animals, Dogs

208 pages, Hardcover

Published October 21, 2025

About the author

Alison Friend creates sweet and funny watercolors of animals that have been featured on greeting and holiday cards. She lives in South Yorkshire, England.

Reviews

[Bob Morehead · Rating 5 out of 5]

OK This is kind of cheating on my reading goal for the year, since this book is overwhelmingly visual, with a little text. But . . . I loved it. A neighbor and fellow dog lover passed it on to us. Our household has included many dogs over the years, and the artist deftly captures the attitude and bearing, and especially, the look in the eyes, of dogs we have had in our family. Whimsical, funny, and thoroughly enjoyable.

[Jasmine · Rating 5 out of 5]

The cutest doggo’s 💛

[Caroline O'Gorman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genuinely so funny. I love the expressions in their eyes and the accompanying descriptions.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

This sweet collection of artwork featuring the most adorable of pups will easily be one of my favorite books of the year! It is truly filled with pictures that are worth a thousand words—the expression on each dog’s face is priceless and somehow captures such a wide range of emotions, from joy to mischief, and everything in between.

It is one of those rare books you can pick up and look through again and again, always finding yourself smiling, maybe even laughing. So any time you find yourself having a bad day, just reach for this little gem of a book, and happiness will soon follow!!

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me so happy 🥰

[Addy Canzano · Rating 5 out of 5]

The most superior art I have ever seen. HELLO I LOVE YOU!

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am glad that I have this book to look at offline after admiring the art on Instagram for a very long time! Just adorable!

[Tarney Sheldon · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much joy packed into each piece of art… and the oh-so-clever accompanying text makes the book shine! Will pick up this coffee table book any time I need a little infusion of happy.

[Sophia · Rating 5 out of 5]

so very cute and delightful. it even caught the attention of the cashier who asked if he could flip through it

[Brownd2 · Rating 5 out of 5]

pawsitively adorable...

[Ashley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Um the most precious dogs ever.

[Mary Ellen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of smiles and laughs!

[Nathanael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly cute art. Smiled and laughed the whole way through.

[Hannah Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is now my new bedside book. I love all da puppers 💚

[Leslie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well, this charming and delightful book will now be my go-to when I need to smile; in fact, I chuckled through most of it.

I have been enjoying Alison Friend’s dog portraits for quite a while and jumped at the chance to have a book full of them. She combines Old Master oil painting techniques with love of dogs and, perhaps most remarkably, captures the dogs’ eyes to perfection. The cover of the book offers a hint of its contents, but what you can’t see is the back cover, which depicts this little dog’s other side. (His entry also taught me a new word—“gilet”; how had I never heard or read it?!!)

Bottom line: If you love dogs, treat yourself to this book. I am still smiling. 🥰

[Knit and Purl Girl · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love love love Alison Friend’s work! I first saw her art online, and instantly became a fan. Her portraits of animals are sweet, soulful, and beautiful. I’d love to have a print or two, but until I can afford one (ever?) this book is the next best thing - maybe better. Each portrait is so cute, it would be hard to pick a favorite. This collection of paintings is adorable, while the text makes you laugh and want to squeeze each pet. My daughter gave me this book for Christmas. I love it! A must for any dog lover!

[Francesca Pohlman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alison Friend has a way of painting dogs that causes the observer to smile. In Dog Only Knows, she includes little humorous descriptions of the dogs she paints. From the dog with a multi-colored puffer jacket to a dog doing a Rubik's cube, all her dogs wear expressions of humans. This book brings joy, especially to dog lovers.

[Ashley Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was full of paintings of adorable, well-depicted dogs and funny captions! I especially enjoyed her Pawtagonia pun, her "Puppy in a Puffer" character, and Debbie with her cardigan. My mom wanted this book to draw dogs as she does :) I highly recommend supporting this artist and buying a paper copy!

[Shanon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought three copies for family members after reading just the first few pages. This book is for the young and old alike. The paintings are adorable and the captions for each dog are hilarious. I’m so glad I stumbled upon this book! You can’t set it down without a smile in your face. I think the world needs a cat one too.

[LudmilaM · Rating 4 out of 5]

What a fun book. Portraits of dogs in anthropomorphic style. The strongest feature of each portrait were the dog's eyes. Full of life and earnest, the perfect "dog's eyes". Great gift for both dog lovers and art lovers.

[Karen Lam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mi cerebro no podía soportar tanta ternura 🥹🥹

[Kristina Robbins · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want every single one of these framed on my wall.

[Hannah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wish there was more big dogs instead of mostly small but I love it

[Lori · Rating 5 out of 5]

Can I give 10 stars out of 5? What a glorious way to spend time- with these whimsical, wonderful dog paintings along with their stories. Simply the best!

[Caroline Horgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming!

[Araliya · Rating 5 out of 5]

😍😍😍

[Cathy Yang · Rating 5 out of 5]

canis lupus familiaris 🙂🐕

[Avery Simpson · Rating 5 out of 5]

a personal favorite it ernest😁

[Julie Holland · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a fun collection of Alison Friend's work. I got this as a Christmas gift and loved seeing all the different, adorable and quirky portraits of dogs.

[Deuce Naftel · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is so sweet! Such incredible talent and the descriptions are very clever.