Because of Winn Dixie: Newbery Honor Review #2

Because of Winn Dixie by Katie Dicamillo is a touching story about a young girl named Opal. Opal finds a stray dog in a Winn Dixie Supermarket parking lot. She decides to name him after the store and call the dog her own. Soon after "adopting" this dog, the young girl finds her life changing for the better. She begins learning a lot about the mother who abanded her because of Winn Dixie. Because of Winn Dixie she begins making friends in her unfamiliar new town. And because of Winn Dixie Opal begins to truly find her place in the world.

I really like the themes behind this book. Opal's character is a character that readers are likely to fall in love with. She is charming and down right honest. This story is one about the relationship between a girl and her dog, but much deeper, it tells the story of lonliness, friendship, and acceptance in this world.

My reaction to this book comes from memories I had as a child with our beloved dog Rusty. Rusty reminds me a lot of Winn Dixie. First of all, HER name was Rusty. Yes, you heard it... I named our GIRL dog Rusty and thought it was the best name in the world for her! Like Winn Dixie, she too was, I guess you could say, "adopted." She was not the most appealing to the eye considering her tail was cut off, she was straggly, and seemed to always have things stuck in her long fur. However, just as Opal saw through Winn Dixie's appearance I too could see the beauty in our family dog. I'll never forget the day my brother and I brought her home from the dog pound. Our summer babysitter had gotten the bright idea to take us there to just look at the animals. Clearly we saw something in little Rusty since day one because we came home with her in our arms. When my mom came home from work that day she was absolutely appalled. Not only did she not want us to have a dog, I remember her saying that was by far the ugliest dog she had ever seen. She told us that when Dad got home from work we better say goodbye because we were not keeping her. Two weeks later she was a member of our family and loved with all of our hearts. We got Rusty when I was in first grade. She died when I was a sophomore in college. She was the best friend a kid could have ever had and a lot of things in my childhood happened "because of Rusty."

I would compare this book to Old Yeller by Fred Gipson and Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls. All three of these stories tell heartwarming tales of adventures and friendships with a dog. They open the hearts of the reader through the freedom of childhood on every page. They connect with the reader through relationships built between a human and an animal. And they touch readers through the commitment and friendship each character has with their beloved companion.