Hoot

Hiaasen, Carl, Hoot, Yearling, 2005, 292 pgs.

Summary: Roy finds it pretty strange living in Florida. He misses Montana terribly and doubts that Florida will be a place he will enjoy living. One day as he is riding the bus to school, and getting bullied by the school bully, he notices a kid run by the bus who is not wearing any shoes. He finds this very strange and one day decides to hop of the bus and run after him to find out where he is going. Roy is in for a real adventure when he discovers the boy is called Mullet Fingers, after the Mullet fish, and is living on his own. As the novel picks up the reader learns that yet another pancake establishment is going to be build right on the top of burrow owl holes and Mullet Fingers is doing his civil duty by delaying and sabotaging the construction site as best an eco-terrorist knows how. As Roy learns more about these tiny owls and what is going on, he volunteers himself to fight the construction that sadly will likely happen. Will Roy and Mullet Fingers save the owls?

Evaluation: Another environmentally focused novel crafted as humorously as Hiaasen knows how! The twisting together of Roy’s side of the story and the cops side of the story and the construction bosses is so well done, I never missed a beat as I jumped from one tale to the next. Hiaasen is doing his part to educate the young readers of the world to stand up for the environment and all the creatures in it that can’t stand up for themselves. This book is a gem for both boys and girls and will have them coming back and asking for more by Hiaasen and other environmental focused authors.

Annotation: Roy had to be the voice of the owls. After all they could only HOOT.

Significance of Book: A real environmentally focused books for young readers. Combining humor with serious issues is a real talent of Hiaasen.

Genre/subject: fiction, humor, environment

Awards:

National:

• ALA Notable Children's Books: 2003
• Best Fiction for Young Adults: 2003
• Newbery Honor Books: 2003

State:

• Arizona: Grand Canyon Reader Award Nominees: 2005
• Colorado: Blue Spruce Award Nominees: 2006
• Connecticut: Nutmeg Award Nominees: 2006
• Florida: Sunshine State Young Reader Award Winners: 2004
• Hawaii: Nene Award Nominees: 2005
• Illinois: Rebecca Caudill Award Nominees: 2005
• Indiana: Young Hoosier Award Nominees: 2006
• Iowa: Teen Award Nominees: 2006
• Kansas: William Allen White Award Nominees: 2005
• Kentucky: Bluegrass Award Nominees: 2004
• Maine: Student Book Award Nominees: 2004
• Maryland: Black-eyed Susan Award Nominees: 2005
• Michigan: Great Lakes Great Books Award Nominees: 2005
• Minnesota: Maud Hart Lovelace Award Nominees: 2006
• Missouri: Mark Twain Award Nominees: 2005
• New Hampshire: Great Stone Face Award Nominees: 2004
• New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age: 2004
• North Dakota: Flicker Tales Nominees: 2005
• Oklahoma: Sequoyah Award Nominees: 2005
• Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Award Nominees: 2005
• Pennsylvania: Young Reader's Choice Award Nominees: 2004
• Pennsylvania: Young Reader's Choice Award Winners: 2004
• Texas: Lone Star Reading List: 2004
• Vermont: Dorothy Canfield Fisher Children's Book Award Nominees: 2004
• Wyoming: Indian Paintbrush Award Nominees: 2004

Why I selected the book: I love Carl Hiaasen and find his books super funny and easy to relate to.

Price: $6.99