For Laika: The Dog Who Learned the Names of the Stars

by Kai Cheng Thom, Kai Yun Ching (Illustrator)

The heart-rending story of Laika, the brave space traveler, by the co-authors of From the Stars in the Sky to the Fish in the Sea.

By two of the co-authors of the acclaimed children’s book From the Stars in the Sky to the Fish in the Sea: the moving beautifully told story of Laika, the dog who learned the names of the stars. Laika is an orphaned stray dog who lives in the streets of Moscow in the then Soviet Union. Although she is loved by her pack, Laika longs one day to learn the names of the stars, since she knows that all dogs become stars when they die—including her parents. One day, a Russian scientist named Vlad offers Laika the chance to travel to the stars by helping him with an important experiment, an event that will change the entire world.

Part fable, part dog story, part history lesson, young and older readers alike will find themselves captivated by Laika’s brave and loving heart, and by her story, which holds important lessons about world peace, science, and the deep bonds between humans and every other creature with whom we share the planet.

Genres: Picture Books, Dogs, Childrens, Space, Animals, History, Canada

40 pages, Hardcover

First published October 1, 2021

About the author

Kai Cheng Thom is a writer, performance artist, social worker, fierce trans femme and notorious liar who loves lipstick and superhero cartoons. A prolific essayist and poet, her work appears online in publications including BuzzFeed, xoJane, Everyday Feminism, and Autostraddle; and in print in Asian American Literary Review, Plenitude, and Matrix Magazine, among others. Her first collection of poetry, a place called No Homeland, will be published by Arsenal Pulp Press in Spring 2017. As a spoken word artist, she has appeared and featured at venues including Buddies in Bad Times Theatre and the Banff Centre for the Arts. She is also a mental health community worker and co-founder of the collective Monster Academy: Mental Health Skills for Montreal Youth. Kai Cheng lives in Montreal and Toronto, both of which were built on unceded Indigenous territory. Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars: A Dangerous Trans Girl’s Confabulous Memoir is her first novel.

Reviews

[Deborah]

A soulful and somber story of the brave Laika, a stray mongrel, that was sent by the Russians to be the first living creature to orbit Earth in November 1957 on Sputnik 2, a Soviet spacecraft. Part imagined and part true, Laika longs to find her parents among the stars. This is a valuable lesson of scientific experiment versus the humane treatment of animals.

[Elizabeth]

For Laika is an emotionally devastating but also hopeful depiction of the life of Laika, a dog sent into orbit by Soviet scientists during the Space Race who tragically died. The story is a fictionalised account that focuses on Laika's thoughts and feelings, and it shows how she wants to be helpful while also showing her as having an image of the stars as being where her deceased loved ones have gone and her curiosity about what's out there. It doesn't shy away from the truth of her death, while still being a simplified version of her story. It does include some great prompts for discussion at the end about the ethics of using animals for scientific experimentation. It can definitely be used as a prompt into these bigger discussions while still offering an engaging and heartfelt story that is more focused on her life than her death. Kids looking for sad stories will be especially into this one.

Now leave me alone to cry.

[Catherine]

thank you so much arsenal pulp for sending me an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review

[tws: death of an animal]

pros:
This book is a children's picture book, this book also gutted me. I adored the story and elements added to Laika's real-life story. The storytelling in this book and the illustrations brought me to another world and I love love love everything about it.
It’s a children's book so there really isn't much I can say about the writing except for how beautiful it is. Adding in Laika’s pov only made this book that much more heartbreaking and inspirational. I would’ve been so lucky to have this book when I was a kid and this definitely would’ve been my favourite.
Even currently as a teenager I have read this over and over again, obsessing over the art and everything.

I also love how at the end of the book there's a page summary of Laika's real story. For those of you who don't know, Laika was a dog who was sent to space as an experiment. Sadly she didn’t make it back.

cons:
absolutely none. get yourself or a child you know a copy of this book rn
Pub Date: Nov 9th, 2021

[Catherine Bond]

J'ai lu la traduction de Kama La Mackerel aux éditions Dent-de-lion (ISBN : 9782924926185), et my my, que j'ai pleuré ! Sensible, émouvant, magnifique. 11/10.

[Elizabeth]

This picture book is sad, and i don't even like dogs.

[Peacegal]

For Laika is a touching, emotional picture book: a fictionalized account of the dog who was sent into space as part of a Soviet experiment in space travel in the late 1950s. Laika was plucked from the streets as a stray, endured tests that were no doubt scary and disorienting for her, and then she was blasted into space aboard Sputnik II. Laika did not survive.

I had mixed feelings about this one. On one hand, it was not nearly as bad, ethically, as the similarly-themed picture book DOGS IN SPACE, which depicted dogs used in spaceflight experiments as having great fun on a grand adventure. On the other, it does depict Laika as having a choice in the matter—the scientist directly asks her if she wants to help advance space science by becoming a canine cosmonaut. Laika is constantly depicted as brave, and when she gets to space, she appreciates the beauty of the stars, where she believes all deceased dogs go, before she herself joins them.

There is a bittersweet moment, based upon true events, when the head scientist brings Laika home for one evening to play with his children right before her spaceflight. The research team knew Laika would most likely perish, and the scientist wanted to give her a day of happiness as she “had so little time left.” In all fairness, this small kindness is not one experienced by most animals used in fatal experiments or other human industries, so Laika was lucky in this one respect.

Laika’s demise is handled delicately and sensitively in this story. In real life both her experience in space, and her death, were not easy.

The book does contain more background info and remarkably astute discussion questions at its conclusion. It asks readers to ponder some questions about the scientists’ quest for knowledge vs. Laika’s experience—encouraging one to think for oneself in the best tradition of humane education. Because additional material is often unfortunately skipped over, however, I feel this doesn’t have the impact it could have. I wish the ethical discussion prompts could have been worked into the text somehow.

[Pascal Scallon-Chouinard]

J’ai tout aimé de cet album jeunesse, qui s’inspire de la véritable histoire de Laïka, une chienne qui a été envoyée en orbite par les Soviétiques dans le cadre de recherches sur l’exploration spatiale, dans les années 1950. Les dessins et les couleurs sont magnifiques, et l’histoire est particulièrement touchante. L’autrice imagine la personnalité de la chienne et les raisons qu’elle aurait pu avoir de vouloir accomplir sa mission (comme voir et apprendre le nom des étoiles, ou retrouver sa famille), malgré le destin tragique qui l’attendait.

La traduction française, réalisée par Kama La Mackerel, pour le compte des Éditions Dent-de-lion, est particulièrement réussie; je ne peux que saluer l’initiative de faire usage d’une écriture inclusive et d’expliquer ce processus d’entrée de jeu, en espérant que ça devienne une pratique mieux connue et plus répandue. Les notes explicatives présentes en fin d’album sont aussi fort appréciables, tout comme le guide de discussions proposé. Cela fait en sorte que cette maison d’édition sera une option que je privilégierai au moment d’acheter d’autres albums pour enfants.

[Roben]

This is the story of Laika, the dog the Russians sent to space on Sputnik 2. The author chose to give Laika a voice to talk about the experience. Laika was a street dog with no home and the scientists in charge of the space program chose several dogs to use as experimental space flight test subjects. The historical information surrounding Laika's journey as the first dog to orbit the earth is based on fact; Laika eagerly anticipating going into space to learn more about the stars and possibly find her parents is not. Sputnic 2 exploded while re-entering earth's atmosphere and Laika There is a good guided discussion at the back of the book discussing the ethics of using animals in experiments.
I am also reading Dog Star by Megan Shepherd which is an historical fiction based on fact chapter book, also about Laika and the space race. Reading these two books together would be a great way to learn more about this time period and the race between the US and Russia.

[Elizabeth Tysdal]

I was fortunate enough to see Kai Chong Thom at the Saskatchewan Festival of Words this past summer, and my husband won a basket of books which included this wonderful book. “For Laika…” is a beautiful story complete with colourful art work by Kai Yun Ching. It is a book written for children but the topic is one that calls out for discussion which can be led by the information in the last pages. Some of the topics for discussion include homeless animals, animal cruelty, death etc.. It sounds heavy but the book handles this all in a beautiful way which opens the way for discussion.

[Dawn]

This story tugs on the heart strings. I guess there was a stray dog that a Russian scientist adopted for an experiment on Sputnik 2. It burst into flames when it returned to earth and Laika, of course, died. The author says it is part fable, part dog story and part history lesson. It is not surprising that a transgender person who is often ostricized and forgotten would have the empathy to write a story about this dog. Oh my heart!

If I were to read this to a class, it would definitely have to be on a day when there is time to discuss it after.

[Laura]

This is a beautiful, sad children's book about Laika, a stray dog in the USSR who was sent into space as part of an experiment and didn't make it back. It explores the ethics of using animals in scientific exploration in language that kids can understand.

I really liked it, but I think it might be too upsetting for some kids- I would be cautious about giving it to a child unless you know that they can handle reading about a dog's death.

[Raquel Pilar]

This is the story of Laika, the dog that was sent to space in order to make it possible for humans in the future.
I am not sure if this was the best way to address the historical event, honestly... Making it so 'adorable' and 'inspiring' was a daring move knowing that whoever fights for animals' rights might read it.... I understand that the authors invite the readers to discuss the matter at the end, but nah, not sure if I had to tell this story, this book would be a good option.

[Anneke Alnatour]

This was a great, and sad, introduction to a part of history that really speaks to the imagination of children. While reading, I didn't realize how closely this book actually portrayed what really happened! I loved the final question in the book, and it was a wonderful conversation starter. Another example of how picture books are the perfect means for non-fiction.

[Juniper Lee]

This was a sweet, tender book about a stray dog reaching for the stars. I always knew about Laika but I didn’t know that she DIED because her SPACESHIP BLEW UP. I felt so sad.. but the book ended on a very sweet note. Now she is among the stars with the pack members that cane before her.

Of course, she wouldn’t have been up there in the first place if people didn’t BLOW HER UP.

[Vanessa]

I was singing this book to my baby, not realizing what it was about, and was devastated when the doggo died in space. Gosh darn it, why Russia, whyyy! But hey I learned something new, and my kiddo loved the singing and the artwork.

[J]

Going to be requesting this for ever library near me, the kids have to know how brave she was. The tone and narrative of this book was great, and I liked the illustrations, although the balance with the white of the pages was off for some of them, it may be because of the digital version I read.

[Andréa]

Note: I accessed a digital review copy of this book through Edelweiss.

[Ananya Garg]

A beautiful telling of the true and sad story of Laika, the first dog in space.

[Audrey]

Such a sweet tribute to Laika the dog. I loved the angle with the stars as well. The illustrations were gorgeous as well.

[Jessi]

I cried.

[Marie-Pier Dodier]

Dessins très bof. Conquête spatiale.

[Faith]

I read this for the first time in the uvic bookstore and immediately started sobbing and still every time I read this book I sob this book has a chokehold on my heart

[mall0rie666]

4.5⭐️

ouch 🥲

[Hilary]

Based on the true story of a dog who went to space. Beautiful illustrations. The dog dies.

Discussion guide for parents and teachers in the back.

[Mélissa]

Touchant 😔 Écriture inclusive.

[Frédérique Halliday]

Un album basé sur une histoire vraie qui nous fait réfléchir sur de nombreux aspects. Et que dire des illustrations colorées et dynamiques qui sont absolument magnifiques.

[Kami 971]

I didn't expect that

[Katherine Toronto Miller]

My son thought it was hilarious that the dog exploded..

[Miran]

The way this innocent children’s book had me bawling!!! This was such an adorable, bittersweet read that will have you running home to hug your dog.

[Bishop Juneblood]

This book was so sad, but beautiful.