| Booktalk
#1
All I had wanted to do was
purchase a box of macaroni & cheese, some white rice and two tomatoes.
But then, I heard the store manager yelling, "Who let that dog in?
Who let that dirty dog in?"
I couldn't see anything but
rolling vegetables and Winn-Dixie employees waving their arms, until a
big, ugly dog skidded to a stop right in front of me and smiled.
What was a lonely 15 year old to do? I told the store manager he
was my dog and that his name was Winn-Dixie. So I don't think very
fast .. so what if the store's name is Winn-Dixie. Anyway, I yelled
"Here, boy! Here, Winn-Dixie!" And what was a stray dog to
do? He obediently came to me and smiled so hard that he sneezed.
It was love at first sight.
Now, I, India Opal Baloni,
of Naomi Florida need to convince my preacher Dad that we need a dog.
After all, my Mom isn't around, and I need company. And we all know
a dog can change your life, can't it? Read BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE,
by Kate DiCamillo. (New
Hampshire Great Stone Face Committee)
Booktalk #2
The day Opal was sent by her
preacher father to buy a box of macaroni-and-cheese and two tomatoes at
the Winn-Dixie grocery store, she returned home with a dog. As Opal tells
it, this is what happened. "The store manager was all red-faced, screaming,
and waving his arms around. 'Who let a dog in here?' There were a lot of
vegetables rolling around on the floor, and then the dog came running around
the corner. He was a big dog. And ugly. And he looked like he was having
a real good time. He skidded to a stop and smiled right at me. I had never
before in my life seen a dog smile, but that is what he did." That is the
beginning of Opal's and the entire town's love affair with this boisterous
friendly mongrel. This delightful story will make you smile from ear to
ear! The author won a Newbery Honor Medal for this book. (Jeannie
Bellavance bellavance@erols.com
for Pennsylvania
Young Reader's Choice Awards)
Booktalk #3
Ten-year-old Opal Buloni has
just moved to Florida where she doesn’t know anyone or have any friends
until she finds a stray dog at the grocery store. Winn-Dixie’s toothy
grin and sneezes win the hearts of anyone he meets. The only thing
Winn-Dixie doesn’t like is thunderstorms. At a party thrown by Opal
and her new friend Gloria Dump for all of their new friends, a sudden thunderstorm
comes up. Winn-Dixie is gone. Opal and her father search for
him but have no luck in finding him. “There ain’t no way you can
hold on to something that wants to go….You can only love what you got while
you got it.” After this Opal understands why her mother left her
and her father when she was just a small child. Will Opal and her
dad ever find Winn-Dixie? Will Opal feel happy again?
(Cappy Holman, clh20@earthllink.net,
USC Graduate Student)
Booktalk #4
Some friends are good at listening
and talking, but Winn-Dixie could only listen. Well, he could bark.
And on occasion he would pant and whine, if he was afraid. But most
of the time he stuck close to Opal Buloni and just listened to her.
Opal first met the huge dog when he skidded to a stop in front of her and
smiled, after running around the Winn-Dixie grocery store. That's
how he got his name. The store manager threatened to call the pound
and Opal declared the dog was hers. “Here, Winn-Dixie,” she said;
and off he went with her to meet her daddy, the preacher.
Winn-Dixie was the first friend Opal made in Naomi, Florida. Since
moving there she had begun to miss her mother, who had left her and the
preacher when she was three-years-old. A quiet, withdrawn man, her
father missed her mother terribly, but never talked about her. It
was Winn-Dixie who gave Opal the courage to say to her father, “I've
been talking to [Winn-Dixie] and he agreed with me that, since I'm ten
years old, you should tell me ten things about my mama. Just ten
things, that's all. One thing for each year that I've been alive.”
And so the preacher did.
Winn-Dixie had a way about him, even if he couldn't talk. He would
help Opal meet other friends in Naomi, Florida. And he would help
her deal with her mother’s absence. Find out how a friend with four
legs and no conversation opened up a new world for a little girl.
(Gail A. King, grking@bellsouth.net,
University of South Carolina)
Booktalk #5
If I asked everyone what their favorite animal was, I bet most everyone
would say dogs. It’s no wonder. They are soft and sweet and loving. Some
of the best commercials, tv shows, or children's movies feature dogs. Why?
The reason is people, especially kids, take one look into those sweet,
innocent eyes and fall madly in love. That's exactly what happened to India
Opal Buloni.
When readers meet Opal, she is not a happy girl. She is new in town no
friends and living with the little conveniences her father's salary as
a preacher can afford her. She is missing the mother who abandoned her
more than ever before and finds it difficult to relate to her father at
times. In the most unlikely place, a local grocery store, Opal’s
quick thinking saves a starving dog from the pound. Opal doesn't know it
at the time, but this dog will save her too.
As time unfolds, Winn Dixie, as he is named, befriends Opal. He is her
constant companion and the two grow closer. At the same time, he also brings
many unusual characters into her life. Because of Winn Dixie, Opal befriends
a witch, a criminal, a prune-faced girl, and two rotten little bullies.
In exchange, Opal gains love and circle of caring. To find out how these
unlikely characters fill Opal’s lonely heart, read Because of Winn Dixie
by Kate DiCamillo.
This book earned a Newbery Honor in 2001 and SC Book Award in 2003. There
is even a movie in post-production due to be released. This book would
be a great source for many different things. First, the book could be used
for teaching point of view as it is written in first person narrative.
Second, it could be used to teach characterization as most of what the
characters say and do helps readers to better understand them. It could
be teamed with other books featuring a non-human main character to create
a
themed unit of study. Certainly, once the movie debuts, there will be another
opportunity to compare and contrast the author’s work with that of the
screen writer. I don't usually like fiction or stories about dogs, but
this one touched me. I know it will speak to other hard to reach readers
too. (Zina L Watkins, zlwatkins3@yahoo.com,
SLIS @ University of South Carolina, Columbia) |
