Soviet Space Dogs

I've always been fascinated by the stories of Laika and Belka & Strelka, so I really looked forward to this book coming out. The book quality itself is very nice, although the size format is a little odd. All the pop art and everyday images of the Soviet space program and the celebrated dogs are great, and worth the book by themselves. The writing and content is....ok. I wished for a more clear chronology to the writing, I got a little confused as it diverges and goes into tangential commentary. It's fine though. Some of the tie-ins to classic literary works lost me a bit. More first person accounts and factual information would have improved it for me, but it's a personal preference really. It's possible this is not that easy since everything was kept secret until 2002. For me, the most powerful parts of the book are the photographs of the dogs, and the chronological account of each of the flights at the end. Reading through the snapshot of data and thumbnail pics of the dogs on each flight, and how the dogs fared, was difficult to get through. It's hard to describe.

During the space race between USA and USSR both desired to send living creatures into space, but we were afraid to send humans.LAIKA was the most famous space dog and the first earthling to orbit earth.Linda Hoag

The book is very nice; good condition. Even has an area with the pictures of the dogs, with the result of their flight.

This is a fascinating and well-written book about the brave dogs (Muttnicks!) who helped further the development of the space program. It is beautifully produced in hard cover format and is loaded with excellent, captioned photos of the dogs and the memorabilia that elevated them to "pop star" status in the Soviet Union. I've already sent several copies to friends who love dogs, and those who are interested in the history of space exploration. I love this book!

After going to the Museum of Jurassic Technology in LA (awesome museum) and seeing their ode to the space dogs, I knew I had to get this for my Russophile girlfriend.She loves it. Lots of pictures and interesting facts about the Soviet Era.

A good read for anyone who is really interested in learning about the dogs and the soviet space program. It's quite thorough, and is just full of information and history. This book also has a pictures - photos of the dogs, soviet artwork, and memorabilia. Neat stuff!

My copy had some binding errors where certain sections toward the middle were out of order, and would repeat later, but once I realized that it was not a huge issue. Great book!

The hardback book is fantastic, and full of information. Very well researched and put together with many old images and artwork included. If you're looking to learn more about the soviet space dogs, this book is for you!

Where do I start?This is a superb book, beautifully made, designed & presented. Aside from the informative text, about space dogs, the pictures & photographs are exquisite. In fact - I've already run-out of superlatives for this 'glorious' little gem.It's one of those books that book-lovers buy, to hold, smell & treasure.Whether you are interested in Soviet history or not this gem would make an excellent gift for any dog / book lover. Believe me; the quality is THAT good.Treat yourself and email me if you are disappointed!

Currently doing a project involving a space dog so this book is great for seeing what's going on in the country at the time. Seeing the different styles of artwork is good inspiration too. It's a lot thicker than I would have thought too: at least 237 pages. Really nice book I plan to keep when the project is over.

I have been interested in this subject since I was young, born 1960, and my father told me of the space race. This book is a really great history of the title subject. Very readable, with interesting sections on collectables.

Two of my favourite topics, Soviets and Space Dogs - what's not to love! Additionally its a lovely quality book, with gorgeous prints inside of various Soviet Space Dog paraphenalia!

This is a quirky, nicely edited book, perfect to give as a present to someone who is interested in space travel or Soviet history (or both!). The pictures are great. The text is sparse and far from groundbreaking, it's not the best book if you are looking for a serious account of historical events.