Millie and Stella best friends forever: The puppy project by Josephine Moon. Illus. by Jedda Robaard

Stella unexpectedly becomes a short-term and fill-in carer for a puppy that potentially will become an assistance dog … but first he must be trained. With her best friend Millie, they decide that training the puppy will mesh nicely with the need for a task or topic for a school project. Stella and Millie attend an alternate school with less rigid structure than most, but a puppy at school comes with all sorts of interesting challenges, including negotiating Gwynyth’s mindfulness project. Can the friends train a puppy and cope with the things that go wrong along the way? 

This is a delightful story with all the sweetness of a rolling and rollicking puppy and indicating the challenge of meeting its needs, and with all the feelings that might be felt. Millie particularly is prone to struggling with big feelings and her strategies for coping under pressure are made plain. This aspect of emotional intelligence would be good for young readers who struggle with anxiety. The ‘mean girl’ interaction with Gwyneth is handled sensitively with a measure of understanding possible. This is a book that young independent female readers aged 6-10 will love, it is written with a simple vocabulary and enough real-life connection to attract readers in this age bracket. There are sweet and naive illustrations scattered throughout the book, but less frequent than in many early chapter books.

Themes: Puppy training, Friendship, Anxiety, School, Mindfulness.

Carolyn Hull