Fox in a Trap

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.

Grade 3-6 In this sequel to Thomas' The Comeback Dog (Houghton, 1981), Daniel is attracted by Uncle Pete's far-flung wildlife adventures that make his routine farm existence appear dull by comparison. Angered when his father says that he will not like trapping, Daniel asks his Uncle Pete to help him set up a trapline. To Daniel, trapping seems to be a more glamorous method of making a living than picking barrels of peaches and milking cows. He develops and matures as he confronts the realities of having to kill the animals trapped by his snares, then reevaluates his relationships with his father and his uncle. Thomas' sound knowledge of farm life coupled with her emotionally charged writing style and Howell's dramatic illustrations makes this an interesting and satisfying book. His stark pencil drawings enhance the dramatic tension created by the text, creating a true marriage between text and illustration. Charlene J. Lenzen, Hales Corners Lutheran School, Wis.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

An evocative sequel to The Comeback Dog, in which Daniel learns that the adventures he craves have a price. He has grown up on the farm and is afraid of being rooted there. When his parents show him how to grow a hybrid peach tree he turns away; if he does it right, will it be his job forever? His Uncle Pete travels constantly, writing, hunting, fishingand Daniel begs him to go trapping. But he is sickened by the baiting of the trap with dead kittens, suffocating the trapped fox to spare the pelt and finding the chewed-off leg of a fox that escaped. Uncle Pete is understanding, and Daniel's parents promise to let him grow, even if that growth takes him away from the farming life. This is a book of earthy descriptions and haunting images of the orchard, the farm and the trapping. Thomas leaves readers with much to ponder and discover. Ages 811.
Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.