SuitabookDog Star
Megan Shepherd
- Reading
- Check in around the puppy’s treatment, the school-bullying thread and any revelations about the space programme. After reading, ask what each friend learns about trust and which choices seem brave or difficult.
- Themes
- Trust and friendship: Laika distrusts people, while Nina is lonely; their relationship grows after they meet in her father’s laboratory. The book presents this favourably.
- Secrecy and difficult truths: Nina’s father works in the Soviet Space Program, and his work becomes more secretive as the Space Race intensifies. The story clearly includes concealed information and revelations, but their moral treatment is not established.
- Bullying and isolation: Nina’s closest friend has moved to America, and Nina is left to face school bullies alone. The story includes social conflict and isolation, but it is unclear how bullying is depicted or addressed.
- Worth knowing
- The book includes a stray puppy fighting for survival, training for space travel, school bullying, loneliness and a parent’s secretive work. The emotional effect of the space-related revelations and the ending remains unclear.