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A review by alisonb13
Fox Friend by Michael Morpurgo
3.0
SPOILER ALERT - this review contains discussion/heads up on ending...
If you are planning to read this to or with small children be warned, although badged as a little kids' book, this is a 'realistic' story, not a sweet little yarn of a foxy friend with a happy ending and not even a gently-dealt-with realism a la Charlotte's Web.
Nine tenths of it are a nicely written little tale about an independent 12-year-old and her budding friendship with a fox cub written by Michael Morpurgo.
So far so good, but the last chapter is called Tragedy and my six-year-old who was so delighted she had gone on to finish it alone, is still recovering from the brutality of the ending. Realistic? Yep. Warts and all true to life? Probably. Enjoyable reading for small people? My daughter and I didn't find it so.
If you want to have a discussion with your kids about the perils of trying to rear wild animals it is probably quite a good vehicle, and maybe ok for middle grade readers, but for smaller animal lovers, perhaps read the last chapter BEFORE you let them do so....might have been an idea to allude to that on the back cover..
If you are planning to read this to or with small children be warned, although badged as a little kids' book, this is a 'realistic' story, not a sweet little yarn of a foxy friend with a happy ending and not even a gently-dealt-with realism a la Charlotte's Web.
Nine tenths of it are a nicely written little tale about an independent 12-year-old and her budding friendship with a fox cub written by Michael Morpurgo.
So far so good, but the last chapter is called Tragedy and my six-year-old who was so delighted she had gone on to finish it alone, is still recovering from the brutality of the ending. Realistic? Yep. Warts and all true to life? Probably. Enjoyable reading for small people? My daughter and I didn't find it so.
If you want to have a discussion with your kids about the perils of trying to rear wild animals it is probably quite a good vehicle, and maybe ok for middle grade readers, but for smaller animal lovers, perhaps read the last chapter BEFORE you let them do so....might have been an idea to allude to that on the back cover..