Because of Winn-Dixie
written by Kate DiCamillo
Bibliography
DiCamillo, K. (2000). Because of Winn-Dixie.
Brief Summary
India Opal is new in town. Her father is the new preacher at Open Arms Baptist Church of Naomi in Naomi, FL. India Opal doesn’t know a single soul besides her father. Her mother left when she was a young girl. India Opal misses her mother very much, especially now that she is trying to make a new home for herself. She finds a stray dog…a real mutt of a dog at the local grocery store. India Opal feels sorry for the mangy animal and decides to adopt him. After all, she really needs the company! She also decides that the perfect name for her new friend is “Winn-Dixie” since that’s where she found him.
Eventually, India Opal makes friends with the town librarian Miss Franny Block and listens to stories of her family history. She befriends the town “witch” Gloria Dump by reading Gone With The Wind to her since she has very poor eyesight. She works part-time for Otis and his pet parrot Gertrude, the “co-owners” of Gertrude’s Pets. In time, India Opal also makes friends with some of Naomi’s younger generation Sweetie Pie Thomas, Dunlap and Stevie Dewberry, and Amanda Wilkinson. India Opal learns that with a little investment of time/effort as well as an open mind, even a “new” home can soon be blessed with “old” friends, especially “because of Winn-Dixie.”
My Impressions
Although I did not personally identify with India Opal, I found this book to be quite a lovely story. As a dog lover myself, it was entertaining to read about India Opal’s adventures with Winn-Dixie. The tenderness with which India Opal held onto her mother’s memory, fighting to learn more about her from her father was poignant. Perhaps mothers and fathers who are thinking of leaving their families might wish to read a novel such as Because of Winn-Dixie to see the possible outcome of their decisions through a child’s eyes.
Reviews
“Like Kimberly Willis Holt's When Zachary Beaver Came to Town (1999), this novel joins the long tradition of fiction exploring a small southern town's eccentric characters…While some of the dialogue and the book's "life lessons" can feel heavy-handed, readers will connect with India's love for her pet and her open-minded, free-spirited efforts to make friends and build a community… Gr. 4-6.”
-- Booklist (May 1, 2000)
Gillian Engberg
“‘In this exquisitely crafted first novel [a Newbery Honor book], each chapter possesses an arc of its own and reads almost like a short story in its completeness,’ said PW in our Best Books of 2000 citation. Ages 8-up.”
-- Publisher’s Weekly (2001)
Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.
“These stories are lovingly offered one after another as rare and polished gems and are sure to touch readers' hearts. They are told in the voice of this likable Southern girl as she relates her day-to-day adventures in her new town with her beloved dog. Do libraries need another girl-and-her-dog story? Absolutely, if the protagonist is as spirited and endearing as Opal and the dog as lovable and charming as Winn-Dixie. This well-crafted, realistic, and heartwarming story will be read and reread as a new favorite deserving a long-term place on library shelves…Gr 4-6.”
-- School Library Journal (June 1, 2000)
Helen Foster James,
Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information
Suggestions for Library Use
This problem novel is a great example of quality realistic fiction. Many children find themselves in a situation where making new friends can be a painful challenge. The way that India Opal deals with the loss of her mother and even helps her father deal with the same loss, might be quite helpful to those students who have lost a parent in some manner. Like Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, and School Library Journal, I would recommend this title for kiddos in grades 3/4-6.
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