A theme of a story is a big or central idea that the author continually uses throughout a piece of work. Themes also can teach you a lesson about life. For example, a possible theme may be "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again." In chapter three, one of the themes of the novel is developed as Billy earns money to buy his dogs. What do you think a good theme would be? Use evidence from the text to help support why you chose this theme.