"Hoot"

Hoot
Author: Carl Hiaasen
No Illustrator
Genre: Chapter Book
Subgenre: Realistic Fiction, Mystery
Theme: Crime and Vandalism, Bullying, Suspense
Primary/Secondary Characters: Curly,Officer Delinko, Roy Eberhart, Mr. & Mrs. Eberhart, Dana Matherson, Beatrice, Mullet Fingers
Date of Publication: Year 2002
Publishing Company: Random House Children's Books
Award: Newbery Honor Award Winner 

Summary: Officer Delinko was a police officer in Florida and got a call that the site for the future home of "Mother Paula's All-American Pancake House" had been vandalized, by a local man named Curly. Delinko checked out the site and Curly had informed him that there were owls living there, and their home was about to be destroyed. The next day, alligators has been found in the port-a-john and it was apparent that someone was trying to hurt the workers and protect the owls. In the meantime, Young Roy Eberhart recently had moved to Florida from Montana, and absolutely hated it. She did not like his school, Trace Middle School, and constantly got bullied on the school bus by a fellow classmate, Dana Matherson. One day,  Roy spotted a boy with no shoes sprinting down the sidewalk, and it appeared he had no destination in mind. Roy grew curious and he saw it the next day, and decided to follow the boy. As he went to exit the schoolbus to follow the running boy, the bully Dana began to choke Roy, and Roy bunched him and broke his nose, then sprinted after the boy. Later in the story, Roy met the boy, and he eventually found out he was the individual attempting to save the owls. Roy decided to help him and petition, with a few of his classmates: Soccer player and bully Beatrice, Dana, and the boy, who was named "Mullet Fingers". The group was successful, saved the owls, and Roy grew to love Florida and look at the positive side of things.
This is a great novel to use in the classroom. It teaches children determination, and to fight for what they believe in. It also teaches them about conservation, and saving the homes that animals reside in, not building and destroying natural habitats. It also touches upon bullying, and how to deal with it, as Roy wrote and letter and apologized to Dana in person for the violent act he put on him. This novel could be used when teaching about animal conservation, especially with older elementary-aged students. The mystery within the novel will keep children wanting to read more, and the happy outcome in the end results in an overall great evaluation for this book.