by Jenn Reese
Henry Holt , 2020
224 pages
9781250243010
Ages 9-12
Samantha, 11, and her sister Caitlyn, 14, have
just arrived at their aunt Vicky’s in Oregon, but Sam is already thinking about
going home. Caitlyn, who has a broken arm, seems content. After Aunt Vicky
gives Sam a beautiful old card game called “Fox & Squirrels,” Sam encounters
the dashing fox and friendly squirrels from the game in the woods. She’s
determined to succeed at the challenges the Fox sets to earn the Golden Acorn, with
which, he explains, Sam can wish herself back home. But the fox’s requests are
morally questionable and increasingly disturbing, while his unpredictable
personality and the way the squirrels strive to not upset him mirrors a truth
that Sam doesn’t want to admit—the truth of why they’ve come to stay with Aunt
Vicky and her wife, Hannah: Sam and Caitlyn’s dad is dangerous in the exact
same way, and Caitlyn’s broken arm was no accident. A book that explores child
abuse and its impact within a family—their mother’s ineffectiveness at
protecting them, Caitlyn’s efforts to protect them both—and across generations—Vicky
and their dad were both victims as children--is tense but also beautifully
reassuring, especially as Vicky and Hannah provide safety and support for the
sisters. The line between fantasy and reality is never delineated in a book about a white family that allows readers to mine their own meanings from its depths.
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