Hattie and the Fox by Mem Fox

 

Hattie and the Fox by Mem Fox

          Fox, M. (2016). Hattie and the Fox. Little Simon. (P. Mullins, Illustrator) ISBN 9781481479295

Hattie has spotted something in the bushes, and it does not look safe.  With each warning, the mysterious animal gets closer and closer, yet her friends don't care!  Hopefully, someone will listen to her before it's too late.

The phrase "seeing is believing" is not always the case, and that was true for Hattie and her friends in this book.  In Hattie and the Fox, Hattie (a chicken) saw a fox hiding in the bush from the very beginning, and as all good friends would, she warned her friends.  Her friends would always dismiss her warning with phrases like "who cares" and "good griefs."  Each time, the fox got closer and closer, and it was when it was too late and the fox fully exposed itself that Hattie was taken seriously.  This is a good reminder to all who read the book that you should always be mindful of what people say; in Hattie's case, had her friends taken her seriously from the beginning, the whole fox expenditure could have been avoided.  While it is true that not everyone tells the truth the entire time (like in the storyline of The Boy Who Cried Wolf), there will be times when you are told something by someone, and it is in your best interest, as it was from Hattie to her friends.

The animals in Hattie and the Fox are very expressive.  Readers can tell that with each pass, Hattie grows more concerned as the fox gets closer and closer.  Hatties friends are also expressive, though their emotions are more evident through their eyes. For instance, after one of the warnings, the cow's eyes are pointed sideways, almost as if they were rolling their eyes.  Another animal's eyes (the pig's) are slits, and the pig is smirking as if to make fun of Hattie, and at the end, once it is revealed that Hattie is telling the truth?  All the animal's eyes widen open to show their shocked expressions!  The book's color palette is more muted, but various colors (and shades of colors) are used to create the characters and the scenes. While a work of fiction, there is one page where Hattie is flying away to safety, and that page made me say, "That is DEFINITELY how a chicken flies!" showing that Patricia Mullins stayed (mostly) true to portraying animals in Hattie and the Fox.

Despite Mem Fox being from Australia and growing up in Zimbabwe, Africa, the book does not mention her hometown or culture, as all the characters are animals. The lack of her culture's mention does not detract from the book, as readers from anywhere and everywhere can enjoy this timeless tale. 

If you are a teacher, consider breaking your students into groups and designating the groups as Hattie, the pig, cow, sheep, goose, or horse to make the book more interactive in a read-aloud setting.  When it is their animal's turn to speak, have your students read their lines together!  You can also have the students guess what they think will happen at the end midway into the book.

What do readers think of Hattie and the Fox?  While no professional reviews could be found for Hattie and the Fox, Kate Schultz from Kids' Book Review agrees that "the detail shown on each animal's face is wonderful, especially at the end after the animal is revealed and the farmyard aminals realise that Hattie was right to be alarmed at the slowly advancing animal." If you enjoyed this book, you may also enjoy Shoes from Grandpa or Tough Boris, which are both books by Mem Fox.

Awards and Honors for Hattie and the Fox

• Booklist Editors' Choice

References

Fox, M. (2016). Hattie and the Fox. Little Simon. (P. Mullins, Illustrator) ISBN 9781481479295

Schultz, K. (2011, May 28). Review: Hattie and the Fox. Kids’ Book Review. http://www.kids-bookreview.com/2011/05/review-hattie-and-fox.html

Simon. (n.d.). Hattie and the Fox. Simon & Schuster. https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Hattie-and-the-Fox/Mem-Fox/9781481479295