This is a perfectly charming and charmingly perfect book.
It tells the story of ten-year-old India Opal Buloni. She has recently moved to Florida with her father, who is a preacher, and she’s having trouble finding her place within the new community. However when she spontaneously adopts a stray dog named Winn-Dixie, it opens the door to new possibilities and new friendships.
Sometimes when I start reading a book, I know that I’m going to enjoy it almost straight away. That is what happened with Because of Winn-Dixie. In fact, it happened as soon as I read the following line:
He was a big dog. And ugly. And he looked like he was having a real good time. His tongue was hanging out and he was wagging his tail. He skidded to a stop and smiled right at me. I had never before in my life seen a dog smile, but that is what he did.
In a strange way, this book reminded me of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Whilst Because of Winn-Dixie doesn’t focus on particularly harsh themes such as racial injustice, it does touch upon the way society views and treats its ‘outcasts.’ The character of Otis, who works in a pet shop, was briefly incarcerated for trivial reasons but since his release from prison he has found it difficult to reintegrate into the community. Even Opal feels unease when she learns of his past, despite the fact that Otis has only ever been kind to her. Similarly, the character of Gloria Dump likes to keep herself to herself and for this reason the local children call her a witch.
I think if you have a young child and you want them to read To Kill a Mockingbird when they’re older, Because of Winn-Dixie could be a good book to start them off with. When they get a little bit older, maybe introduce them to Lauren Wolk’s Wolf Hollow and then, finally, To Kill a Mockingbird.
Because of Winn-Dixie is adorable and funny and easy to read. I think it will hit especially close to home for readers who have ever owned a dog.
I’ve already recommended this book to a few different people and I’m sure I’ll read it again myself in the near future.
Realm of the Bookworm 