Hoot

Hiaasen, C. (2002). Hoot. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

Summary

Hoot is a mystery like no other. While Roy is trying to find a place to fit into his new home in the south Florida, a construction foreman repeatedly reports mysterious vandalism at the site of a new Mother Paula's All American Pancake House, keeping the newest addition to the police force busy figuring out how to report vandalism where nothing was broken. It seems as though the vandal's goal is not theft, but delay and disorder of the building site. Roy makes an unlikely friend in an older, tough girl at school named Beatrice, who eventually lets him in on secrets about her family and the mystery of the running boy he has been curious about since seeing him one morning from his bus window. When he realizes the running boy is the construction site vandal, Roy gets pulled into a complicated web of family issues, new friendships, business, politics, and environmental problems. He learns the boy's sole mission is to preserve the habitat of the small burrowing owls Mother Paula's is indifferent to destroying by building their new restaurant. Even after he decides he should help the owls, Roy has to be creative and gutsy to find a way to save the rare owls who win people's hearts with their tiny "hoot"s.

Worth a bookmark?

It is interesting that the creatures this book revolves around, the small burrowing owls, rarely make an appearance in the story. That they are talked about but rarely seen adds another element of mystery to this book. Although the main issue is preserving an environment there are many other problems Roy and the other characters must deal with in the story, problems like bullying, new friendships, and unique families which readers can learn valuable lessons from. I think this book is great for middle schoolers to learn that they do not have to wait until they are adults to make a positive impact on their world.

In my library…

I would use this book in a unit or display about the environment and endangered species. Although the burrowing owls aren't portrayed as "officially" endangered, it is important for students to learn that building new, exciting places like restaurants or shops often has environmental consequences attached, such as destroying many plants or animals' habitats.

Reviews

Hiaasen, a columnist for the Miami Herald and the author of many best-selling novels for adults about the wild and wacky side of the state of Florida, offers a hoot of a read here in his first novel for YAs. Roy is the new kid in town, a student at Trace Middle School in Coconut Cove. From the school bus window, as a bully is harassing him, Roy spots a barefoot boy his age running by, and he becomes intrigued. Roy follows the boy, and gradually learns that he is involved in trying to protect the nesting site of some rare burrowing owls. This site is currently an empty lot that is about to be turned into a pancake house by a corporate executive called Chuck Muckle, with the assistance of a bald foreman called Curly. Adventures and misadventures ensue—alligators pop up in portable potties and a tough girl takes a bite out of Roy's bike tire—before Roy works out a way to get revenge on the bully and help the barefoot boy save the owls. My 14-year-old daughter read this and liked it, calling it "clever and funny" and commenting "it was interesting how the plots came together." Hiaasen's trademark over-the-top humor and satire, along with his concern for safeguarding Florida's wildlife, come through clearly and will entertain readers. Here's hoping he continues to write for YAs. Recommended for junior high school students. (Paula Rohrlick; KLIATT – KLIATT)