num_pages: 182
description: An unforgettable first novel about coming of age one sweet summer—and learning to love what you have.The summer Opal and her father, the preacher, move to Naomi, Florida, Opal goes into the Winn-Dixie supermarket—and comes out with a dog. A big, ugly, suffering dog with a sterling sense of humor. A dog she dubs Winn-Dixie. Because of Winn-Dixie, the preacher tells Opal ten things about her absent mother, one for each year Opal has been alive. Winn-Dixie is better at making friends than anyone Opal has ever known, and together they meet the local librarian, Miss Franny Block, who once fought off a bear with a copy of WAR AND PEACE. They meet Gloria Dump, who is nearly blind but sees with her heart, and Otis, an ex-con who sets the animals in his pet shop loose after hours, then lulls them with his guitar.Opal spends all that sweet summer collecting stories about her new friends and thinking about her mother. But because of Winn-Dixie or perhaps because she has grown, Opal learns to let go, just a little, and that friendship—and forgiveness—can sneak up on you like a sudden summer storm.Recalling the fiction of Harper Lee and Carson McCullers, here is a funny, poignant, and utterly genuine first novel from a major new talent.
language: English
title: Because of Winn-Dixie
titlecomplete: Because of Winn-Dixie
characters: The Preacher, Otis, India Opal Buloni, Winn-Dixie, Miss Franny Block, Amanda Wilkinson, Gloria Dump
genres: Fiction, Animals, School, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Chapter Books, Classics, Childrens, Realistic Fiction, Dogs
ratings_count: 249455
places: Florida
awards: awardedAt: 978336000000
name: Newbery Medal, awardedAt: 978336000000
name: Book Sense Book of the Year Award
category: Children's Literature, awardedAt: 978336000000
name: Josette Frank Award, awardedAt: 1009872000000
name: Texas Bluebonnet Award, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: South Carolina Book Award
category: Children's Book Award, awardedAt: 1009872000000
name: Charlotte Award, awardedAt: 1104566400000
name: Nene Award, awardedAt: 1009872000000
name: Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Book Award
category: Grade 4-6, awardedAt: 1009872000000
name: Massachusetts Children's Book Award, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: Keystone to Reading Book Award
category: Intermediate, awardedAt: 1009872000000
name: Vermont Golden Dome Book Award, awardedAt: 978336000000
name: Sunshine State Young Readers Award
category: Grades 3-5, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: Pacific Northwest Library Association Young Reader's Choice Award
category: Junior, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: Charlie May Simon Children's Book Award, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: New Mexico Land of Enchantment Award
category: Children's, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: California Young Readers Medal
category: Intermediate, awardedAt: 978336000000
name: Judy Lopez Memorial Award for Children's Literature, awardedAt: 946713600000
name: Chapman Award for Shared Reading
category: Fiction, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: William Allen White Children's Book Award, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: Washington State Sasquatch Award, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: Oklahoma Sequoyah Award
category: Children, awardedAt: 1041408000000
name: Mark Twain Readers Award
publisher: Candlewick Press