I read the Tenth of December and found it terrific. This one threw me off for a time--it seemed oddly simple for Saunders. A "writing fox" describes the brutality/wonder of modern life. Nothing new. But . . . this would be a great short story for middle school and even high school kids. It's clever linguistically, it's funny, and it's got food for thought. I was lucky enough to use Junior Great Books when I taught, and I'd say that Fox 8: A Story is a perfect fit for that series. Teachers will love it; kids will love it. I hope it finds those readers.
PUPPY Dysfunctional family has puppy that they need to get rid of. Mom places ad; family is coming over. Description of family. Mom: husband changed from long-haired attractive to stooped old man. Husband: talks constantly of living on a farm and doing what needs to be done, though he never lived on a farm. Conversations together: Sell and move to Arizona, get hooked on phonics for kids, buying a car wash. . . wonderful randomness. Straight-laced suburbanite comes to look at puppy. Seems like she will buy it, even though she is repelled by house. (Dog turds on carpet, filthy.) She is proud of how accepting she is until she looks out window and sees white trash's son tied by harness to a tree. Reader knows he is a menace to himself, darting across I-90, for example. Suburban mother beats hasty retreat, leaving dog to be (probably) drowned by dad who does what has to be done. Suburbanite remembers her own pathetic ch...
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