Pax
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4.5 • 224 Ratings
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
New York Times Bestseller * National Book Award Longlist
From bestselling and award-winning author Sara Pennypacker comes a beautifully wrought, utterly compelling novel about the powerful relationship between a boy and his fox. Pax is destined to become a classic, beloved for generations to come.
Pax and Peter have been inseparable ever since Peter rescued him as a kit. But one day, the unimaginable happens: Peter's dad enlists in the military and makes him return the fox to the wild.
At his grandfather's house, three hundred miles away from home, Peter knows he isn't where he should be—with Pax. He strikes out on his own despite the encroaching war, spurred by love, loyalty, and grief, to be reunited with his fox.
Meanwhile Pax, steadfastly waiting for his boy, embarks on adventures and discoveries of his own. . . .
Pax is a wonderful choice for independent reading, sharing in the classroom, homeschooling, and book groups.
Plus, don't miss Pax, Journey Home, the sequel to the award-winning and modern classic Pax.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Peter found Pax, a fox, when he was an orphaned kit, and he has kept him as a pet since his mother's sudden death, five years earlier. Now Peter's stern father is bound for an unspecified war one fought at least partly on domestic soil forcing 12-year-old Peter to move in with his grandfather, and to release Pax. It takes less than a night for Peter to become overwhelmed with remorse by morning, he is hiking hundreds of miles to the spot where he reluctantly abandoned Pax. The aftermath of that separation is told in chapters that alternate between the fox and the boy's points of view. In an exceptionally powerful, if grim story, Pennypacker (Summer of the Gypsy Moths) does a remarkable job of conveying the gritty perspective of a sheltered animal that must instantly learn to live in the wild ("Orphaned before he'd been weaned, Pax had never eaten raw prey. His hunger rose at the blood-scent and so did his curiosity"). Both boy and fox encounter characters who drastically rearrange their worldview: after Peter is injured, he is taken in by Vola, a veteran who has lost a leg and has strong feelings about the true costs of war. The opening scene promises heartbreak that the rest of the story delivers, as boy and fox journey to reunite, each dramatically altered by what it takes to get there. Art not seen by PW. Ages 8 12.
Customer Reviews
Notable middle-grade-accessible book that addresses trauma & grief
As I read this, I could not help but think of what the people of Ukraine are going through. Pax is the story of a boy, Peter, who and his fox, Pax. Peter rescues the orphaned Pax shortly after the death of his own mother, and the develop a close bond. But the unnamed country they live in is going to war, his father gets called up to fight, and he has to move to his grandfather's and abandon Pax. Peter and Pax each go on their own journeys as they try to find their ways back to each other in their "war-sick" country.
The writing is about as good as it gets for the middle-grade level books. There are themes throughout that are great for young readers to consider. Peter has experienced trauma and grief, as has another character introduced later in the book. Reading this could be both challenging and helpful to kids with similar experiences.
I expected the plot to be predictable, but there are some twists that I did not expect but were somehow perfect anyway. This is a neat story that I think will become as notable as other middle grade classics like Hatchet and Holes.
Amazing
You just have to read it. It’s unable to be put into words. 🦊👦
Cute plot… but a few weird things in it tho…
For me this is kinda hard to review. It’s got such a cute plot but… it’s got a few inappropriate references. 🙄 I was kinda like, “this is such a cute book why does it have weird stuff in it?!?” 😏 It DID make me want a fox tho! I feel foxless now! 🤣
~ #FoxAndBooksGirl 🦊📚☕️