The Plot In 5 Sentences Or Less:  War is approaching and Peter’s father must go off to fight.  Before he leaves, he forces Peter to leave his pet fox, Pax, in the woods; it is not welcome at his grandfather’s house where Peter must stay for the time being.  After leaving Pax and traveling to his grandfather’s, Peter is wracked by guilt and decides that he must journey to find his fox.  Alone in the woods, Pax learns the way of the wild foxes and learns that as the war draws closer, the animals must travel to safety.  Both Peter and Pax find themselves on a journey on which they will discover much about themselves.

My Take: I thought that this was an engaging book from the first page.  Pennypacker manages to relate the story of a child’s attachment to his pet in a way that is heartfelt but not sentimental.  I also appreciated that she portrays realistic fox behavior but also uses a deft amount of anthropomorphism to draw in the reader.  The foxes came across as both believable animals and interesting characters.  I found that the narrative slowed down a touch when Peter sought refuge at a hermit’s house, but I thought the ending was sheer magic and more than made up for it.

One Interesting Note About The Author:  Pennypacker is also the author of the Clementine book series.