BecauseOfWinnDixie

=//Because of Winn-Dixie//, by Kate DiCamillo=

Reviewed by Derek Cheng
This is a brilliantly written first novel. The story just touches your heart. It reveals all the good and bad in the world, how it is all squished together and rolls along with daily life, and how we barely notice it. This is just a terrific book to read, telling about sorrow and happiness, love and hate, sweetness and bitterness, and more.

In this novel, it tells the story of the daughter of a preacher who has to move to a new place where she has no friends. This girl, Opal, bonds with the librarian, who tells her stories. She also meets an old lady named Gloria Dump while being bullied by a pair of twin boys. Opal starts a friendship Gloria, and also one with the pet store clerk. She creates bonds with many neighbourhood people, and through the stories that they tell, she learns about happiness and sorrow, and how to make friends with all people, even people that you have never liked. The neighbourhood is brought together. Among all of this is a dog, Winn-Dixie, who became Opal's dog at the start of this story, and it was this friendship that brought together all the others.

This book teaches a lot to children who do not understand much about emotions. Much of the lessons are easy to understand, as they have been put into the stories that are told to Opal. A very happy ending concludes the story, and I felt very satisfied after reading it. This story is light and flowing, and calms your mind as you read it. It's definitely a great book.

I recommend this book to readers who love some emotion in the book. I also recommend that this book be read by kids age 11 and under, because it teaches some lessons that should be learned at that age.