Because of Winn-Dixie by
An unforgettable first novel about coming of age one sweet summer—and learning to love what you have. The summer Opal and her father, the preacher, move to Naomi, Florida, Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket—and comes out with a dog. A big, ugly, suffering dog with a sterling sense of humor. A dog she dubs Winn-Dixie. Because of Winn-Dixie, the preacher tells Opal ten things about her absent mother, one for each year Opal has been alive. Winn-Dixie is better at making friends than anyone Opal has ever known, and together they meet the local librarian, Miss Franny Block, who once fought off a bear with a copy of WAR AND PEACE. They meet Gloria Dump, who is nearly blind but sees with her heart, and Otis, an ex-con who sets the animals in his pet shop loose after hours, then lulls them with his guitar. Opal spends all that sweet summer collecting stories about her new friends and thinking about her mother. But because of Winn-Dixie or perhaps because she has grown, Opal learns to let go, just a little, and that friendship—and forgiveness—can sneak up on you like a sudden summer storm. Recalling the fiction of Harper Lee and Carson McCullers, here is a funny, poignant, and utterly genuine first novel from a major new talent.
Because of Winn-Dixie
Directed by Wayne Wang ; based on the novel by Kate DiCamillo.
AnnaSophia Robb, Jeff Daniels, Cicely Tyson.
Kate DiCamillo
At the start of Kate DiCamillo's Newbery Honor novel, ten-year-old India Opal Buloni has just moved to Naomi, Florida. Her mom has left the family, and her preacher father has been hiding in his old "turtle shell." All India Opal wants is a friend. That's when she finds Winn-Dixie, a stray dog she rescues at the local grocery store. Having Winn-Dixie is great. India Opal starts to meet people in town, her father starts poking out of his shell, and India Opal even begins to understand why her mother may have left. All this happens because of Winn-Dixie.
Kate DiCamillo lived in the South for much of her childhood and received her bachelor's degree from University of Florida in Gainesville. She writes for children and adults and is a recipient of the 1998 McKnight Artist Fellowship for Writers. She says about Because of Winn-Dixie, "The book is (I hope) a hymn of praise to dogs, friendship and the south."
Kate DiCamillo currently lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Because of Winn-Dixie, her first work with Candlewick Press, is a Newbery Honor Book.