Today our group is writing about books we love. I had to wrestle with what to recommend. I just finished Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt and the ever phenomenal Sarah Plain and Tall by Patricia MacLachlan. But today I’m especially excited to get to recommend Stone Fox by John Reynolds Gardiner.
But first, let me point you toward my fellow writers, who have excellent reads to share.
Patricia Reding
Author of Oathtaker
In truth, posts about “books we love” are a bit difficult for me. This is due to two oddly co-existing—yet seemingly entirely contrary—truths: (1) there are so many I love; and (2) it is so difficult to find one that I love. How is this possible?
There are numerous changes going on in the publication world, which means that one cannot always have a sense of certainty in advance as to whether a book will be worth the time and expense. Still, there is so much out there to read! So, I’m going to step back in time . . .
Robin Lythgoe
Author of As the Crow Flies
I so enjoy doing our regular “Books We Love” posts! Do I pull one of the (usually older) books off my library shelves? Or do I choose something (usually newer) from my e-reader? I love revisiting my favorite books—and I love exploring new ones! Decisions, decisions…
You’ll be happy to know I made one.
I am delighted to spotlight A Hero’s Curse by our very own P.S. Broaddus. The book is a wonderful middle-grade/young adult fantasy-adventure about a twelve-year-old blind girl and her talking cat.
“Of making many books there is no end,” the wise have said. And we forget the gems of the past, buried in a mountain of fluff n’ stuff. Stone Fox is one of those gems. It’s an incredibly short children’s novel, written in a plain, simple prose, (similar to Sarah Plain and Tall, which just goes to remind us writers, we don’t have to wax eloquent for hundreds of pages to pack a punch).
Little Willy, our protagonist, is facing an ailing grandfather and the loss of their farm. To save all, he enters the National Dog Sled race held in Jackson, Wyoming with his faithful dog, Searchlight, and…well, you’ll just have to read the rest.
Stone Fox is about drama, in the best possible way. It’s exciting, it’s emotional and it’s unexpected. And it isn’t just the story that’s unexpected–every event turns us on our heads and pulls on our hearts–it makes us laugh and cry, just as the best writing should.
It’s a fun one to read aloud, a gold mine for writers looking to learn more about packing drama in their own writing, and just good literature.
So comment below! Have you already read Stone Fox? If so, how did you find it? Do you think this story speaks to an older generation, or can today’s kids fall in love with Searchlight as well?