If you enjoy stories about dogs, you'll love Because of Winn-Dixie, by Kate DiCamillo. You don't have to be a dog person, however, to see why this book is a Newbery Medal winner. India Opal Buloni is a ten-year-old girl who just moved to a small town in Florida with her father, a preacher. Without a mother, and without any friends, Opal struggles with an emptiness and a loneliness in her new surroundings. Then she adopts a scruffy mongrel of a dog who changes everything. She names him Winn-Dixie after the supermarket where she rescues him. Winn-Dixie has a lovable personality that opens doors for Opel in making new friends. Their experiences together help Opal begin to comprehend her world that is both sweet and sad.

Opal's new town is full of exotic characters. Her first friend is an elderly librarian, Miss Franny Block. Otis is the shy manager of the pet shop who has a criminal past. However, one gets the sense that Otis wouldn't hurt a fly. Then there is Gloria Dump--whom the kids believe to be a witch. Precocious Opal instantly befriends her, however, and finds that looking into a person's heart can bring down barriers and misunderstanding.

While Opal becomes close to Winn-Dixie, she would also like to be better acquainted with her father. "The preacher," as Opal refers to him, is a loving dad but is often too busy to spend much energy on his daughter. In addition, he is often reluctant to talk about Opal's mom when she inquires. Like Opal, he is having a hard time coming to terms with her abandonment.

Ironically, some the characters who provide excellent teaching moments are those whom Opal dislikes: "pinch-faced" Amanda Wilkinson and the Dewberry brothers. These three unfriendly peers of Opal provide challenges for her to overcome. How she handles their inhospitable and often antagonistic behavior is a lesson to which all students can relate. Moreover, the recurring theme of tolerance and befriending a diverse set of individuals is a lesson that benefits all students.

The quirky characters have more to them than what originally meets the eye and will keep a wide variety of readers enthralled. The story is recommended for ages nine and up. Many girls will instantly relate to Opal's thoughts and feelings. And both boys and girls will love the humor that comes at just the right time--often after a few teary-eyed passages. Slower readers will be relieved to find fewer lines of text per page, making the book a much quicker read. (Never judge a book by its thickness.) Of course, anyone who has ever owned a dog or lost a parent will find common emotions with the story's moments of joy and times of melancholy.

Teachers will want to make Because of Winn-Dixie a cornerstone of their library. The story is a paragon of contemporary realistic fiction that blends complex emotions with wit, intriguing characters, and a plot that keeps readers' attention. Most importantly, the book provides excellent discussions with students on a variety of issues: how to make friends not just with people you instantly like, but also dislike, and why it's important not to judge people from cursory information. Teachers will find Because of Winn-Dixie a valuable part of their classroom reading list. ( )

Love the book and the movie! ( )

Because of Winn-Dixie is a story about India (Opal) Buloni, a ten year old girl who lives with her father, and her remarkable friendship with Winn-Dixie - a stray dog she rescued from the Winn-Dixie market. As Opal embarks on her journey of self discovery she finds Winn-Dixie to be her most loyal friend who not only helps her create meaningful friendships with the people in her new town but who also assists her in strengthening the relationship with her father and learning more about her estranged mother. Because of Winn-Dixie is an inspirational novel about a girl who is trying to find a way in the world and a dog who makes this endeavor possible!

Some of the key characters include: Opal - a ten year old girl on a journey of self-discovery; Winn-Dixie - a stray dog who becomes her best friend; the preacher - her loving father who was recently hired as minister of the Open Arms Baptist Church in Naiomi, Florida; Gloria, an older woman in the neighborhood who is nearly blind and whom the neighborhood boys swear is a "witch"; Otis, an ex-convict who works at the local Pet Store and has a passion for playing music on his guitar; and Mrs. Franny - a petite yet friendly librarian who loves sharing stories with Opal (especially about her great grandfathers business!)

Themes in Because of Winn-Dixie include loneliness, relationships and coming of age. As the reader quickly learns, Opal is has never felt more lonely in her life. She has moved to a new town where she knows no one except her father, who tends to be more of an introvert than extrovert. As you read the novel you will notice that the characters who become her closest friends (Mrs. Franny, Otis, Gloria and Winn-Dixie) all appear to be loners as well who are interested in forming a relationship with Opal. Also, both Opal and the preacher deal with their feelings of loneliness in regards to her fleeting mother/his fleeting wife and their anxieties about whether or not she will ever return. While loneliness is a major theme so is relationships. Opal begins the book by making an immediate friend - WInn Dixie - and progresses from there. Although she struggles, at first, to befriend children her age, Winn Dixie helps her to meet and develop compassionate relationships with individuals young and old while strengthening her family ties and knowledge about her absent mother. Also, Opal's journey of self-discovery is initiated by the first theme, loneliness and satisfied by the second theme, relationships. Readers will be drawn into the book because they will want to satisfy their curiosity of how Opal finds her place in her new town through the help of all the relationships she develops and the loneliness she abandons!

I believe this book will attract younger girls (ideally ages 9-14) because many of them will be able to relate to Opal as she attempts to find her place in society. It could appeal to students of all ages and genders who have a strong interest in dogs, perhaps have dogs of their dog whom they value, who have ever moved to a new town and struggled to fit in and who have ever grown up in a single parent household. Boys may also be interested in this novel not only for the reasons above but also because there are young boy characters whom I believe many boys could relate to or know someone who relates to them. Also, boys tend to be interested in books involving animals such as this one. The casual tone the text is written in allows readers to feel as if they could be a member of this society - perhaps someone who Opal could befriend!

For a teacher, this book would be a great resource to introduce and read in your classroom for numerous reasons. In terms of text structure, it is written in casual/conversational language that it easy for most students to both read and comprehend. The chapters are short and the font is of a larger size. One strong component of the book is that the main parts of Opal's life are repeated numerous times throughout the book, as if the author is stressing the importance of these concepts to the text as well as reminding the readers of what they previously read and may have forgotten. As previously mentioned, it is a novel to which many different individuals can relate for one reason or another. Another significant part of the book is the use of a wide variety of characters. Not only does this give the reader more people to whom they could possibly relate but it also allows students to practice and learn about characters. They could compare and contrast the characters themselves as well as their relationships with one another or possible make text-to-text connections with another novel they have read. Perhaps the most powerful thing I believe the author does is tell the story as in the first person narrative. By allowing students to hear Opal's thoughts about everything she does and everywhere she goes students are witnessing "cognitive modeling." This modeling may inform students how to go about thinking about, making and reflecting on their own decisions which is a crucial academic and social skill! ( )

This is one of my favorite books that I've read to my then 5-year-old daughter. Since then she had read it herself. The writing is straighforward and characters are complex and real, but entertaining and lively enough to capture her interest. The story has some great themes of friendship and living on and finding happiness, even after sad events. My daughter talks about this book all the time. ( )

Here we have a story about a little girl who is sent to the store to pick up some groceries only to come back with a dog. However, through this dog the girl, Opal, grows more and more as the story goes on in her relationships with the other characters.

This book was very cute and I loved the way Winn-Dixie seems like another human character in the book.

I would use this book in the classroom to get students interested early in chapter books. It's not the fantasy or sci-fi type stories they may be used to nowadays but I think Winn-Dixie alone is enough to get most kids to sit down and give this book a chance. ( )