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Fox in a Trap

by Jane Resh Thomas

Other authors: Troy Howell (Illustrator)

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383646,145 (3.38)None
Daniel looks forward to helping his Uncle Peter set traps for the foxes that have been plaguing the family farm, until the discovery of a severed fox paw makes him seriously question what he and his uncle are doing.
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Comparable to Shiloh and other books of a certain time, this is a fast read. Under a hundred pages long! It's simple, it's a bit unrealistic or maybe just enough.

Daniel's a farm child, his mom and dad expect him to be one, they're farm workers themselves, they express slight disappointment in his uncle for not being one. There is some uncomfortable peer pressure.

Dated in the eighties, this follows fox trapping only it doesn't quite have a conflict. It's worth a quick read and put back, really it sounds like it could be much more interesting than it is.

Even so, having said that, it's not a book I'd suggest passing up. Just a piece of history albeit uglier and with more dead kittens.

Cross posted from my Goodreads review. ( )
  Yolken | Oct 16, 2019 |
Michigan farm-boy Daniel longs to be more like his Uncle Pete in this short chapter-book exploration of the ethics of animal hunting and trapping, and the different paths people choose, in their relationship to the land. Secretly resentful of the ceaseless, back-breaking labor involved in running the family peach orchard, and envious of his uncle's seemingly desirable lifestyle, as a far-traveling writer working for a fishing and hunting magazine, Daniel yearns to break free of his father's expectations, and lead a life of adventure, rather than tying himself down to one place. But when he convinces his uncle to join him in a scheme to set out a winter trap-line for the local foxes, Daniel discovers that perhaps he has more of his father in him than he thought, and that trapping isn't for him...

At a brief seventy-eight pages, Fox in a Trap is a fairly simple story, one which centers on the resolution of a familial crisis. Although they love one another, it is clear that there is tension between Uncle Pete, who, despite his fondness for his childhood home, has no interest in the hard work necessary to run the orchard, and Daniel's father, who can conceive of no other life, and who has no stomach for hunting or trapping foxes (although he apparently does hunt deer). Daniel is caught somewhere between the two, determined to prove he does have the stomach for trapping. His discovery that 'having the stomach' is not necessarily synonymous with courage, and that he might be able to find a middle road between his father and his uncle's path, form the crux of the story's resolution. Although Thomas does a good job setting up her story, and involving the reader in her protagonist's struggle, I felt that her resolution came too easily. In a few pages, what could have been a very unhappy situation with long-lasting consequences, is amicably resolved, and the seeds of family peace are sown. After the rather visceral depiction of the trapping and killing of a fox, and Daniel's resultant misery, as he considers the similarities between foxes and his beloved dogs, as well as the difficulties of backing away from a project he himself actively sought to promote, somehow the quick resolution felt a little convenient. That said, Fox in a Trap does have value as an exploration of issues of family and home, agriculture and animal hunting/trapping, and young people figuring out what path to follow. I picked it up largely because of the connection to foxes - the depiction of our vulpine friends in children's fiction being an interest of mine - but there's really little here about the foxes themselves. It is readers with an interest in the themes mentioned above who will find it most interesting, and it is to them I would recommend it. ( )
  AbigailAdams26 | Jul 27, 2015 |
00008797
  lcslibrarian | Aug 13, 2020 |
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Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Jane Resh Thomasprimary authorall editionscalculated
Howell, TroyIllustratorsecondary authorall editionsconfirmed
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Daniel looks forward to helping his Uncle Peter set traps for the foxes that have been plaguing the family farm, until the discovery of a severed fox paw makes him seriously question what he and his uncle are doing.

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