Space Boy and His Dog

[strike thru Sister in title]Space hero Niko and his dog are on a moon mission to find a lost cat. The illustrations show what's really happening: a pretend journey in a cardboard-box spaceship. They're joined by stowaway/sister Posh ("but she is not in this story"). Comical illustrations follow Niko's imagination, working in concert with the tongue-in-cheek text and making the relatively sophisticated structure easier to follow.

Intrepid space hero Niko, who “lives on Planet Home with his dog, Tag, and his copilot, Radar,” is on a mission to find a lost cat on the moon. That’s what the narrator tells us, but the first few illustrations show what’s really happening: a boy, his dog, and his toy robot are on a pretend journey in a cardboard-box spaceship (a “Lost Cat” sign on a neighborhood tree provides inspiration). The narrator matter-of-factly continues: “Niko’s sister, Posh, lives on Planet Home, too. But she is not in this story.” Despite Niko’s best efforts to control the narrative, which is divided into eight brief chapters, persona-non-grata Posh inserts herself into the action by stowing away on her brother’s spaceship. Filled with kid-pleasing details, Neubecker’s comical illustrations give themselves over to Niko’s imagination after blast-off and, until the end, are set in space or in a fantastic lunar landscape. The expressive art works in concert with Regan’s tongue-in-cheek text, enriching the story and helping make its relatively sophisticated structure easier to follow. There’s some drama when Niko, in a huff, abandons Posh on the moon (“Since Posh is not in this story, it is SO NOT FAIR that she found the missing cat”); his grand gesture to save Posh is rebuffed: “the lost sister refuses to be rescued.” The final three pages bring everyone safely back to Planet Home in time for dinner. kitty flynn