Bad things have happened to Sam and her sister. Things that are private, things that are utterly dreadful. The welfare people have stepped in and now Sam and Caitlin find themselves far from their home in Los Angeles. Aunt Vicky lives in Oregon in a small ramshackle house with chickens. Sam is sure this move is all her fault. She does not want to stay. Yesterday it was her eleventh birthday. Aunt Vicky gives Sam a card game - the Game of Fox and Squirrels.
On the first night a fox arrives in her room. His name is Ashander.
"He wore a hat, just like from the game, and a fancy coat too."
The Fox offers Sam a challenge. If she can complete the three tasks or tests he sets for her she will "win" the Golden Acorn. With this artifact she can make any wish and it will come true. Sam cannot ask for help and once a challenge has begun she cannot back out. Her only helpers are three squirrels named Maple, Birch and Cedar. They seem cute, they seem kind, they seem helpful but appearances can be deceptive and those tests are very hard - perhaps even cruel.
I love the tone of writing used by Jenn Reese. Here are a few text examples:
"The tree-guards along the side of the road laughed, their branchy shoulders rustling. Oh, they were arrogant, those trees. Thinking they were so high and mighty just because they were, well literally high and mighty."
"The front door of the house flapped open, and a lumberjack appeared. Well, a tall, wiry woman dressed like a lumberjack, wearing jeans and a red flannel shirt even though it was summer. Her hair was short and spiky and black with a tiny bit of gray at her temples."
Then there are the hints about Sam and her sister and what they may have endured before they were sent to live with Aunt Vicky.
"Were they upset? Had Sam already done something wrong? She shrank against the side of the car, trying to stay out of the way."
"She'd been tired and confused when people had started asking her the sorts of questions that no one had ever asked before. She should have kept her mouth shut."
"Good moods could turn in a flash. Lightning could strike out of nowhere - even if there wasn't a cloud in the sky ... some days it was exhausting. Some days, she was sloppy or tired and she made a mistake. Those were awful days."
"Sam knew how to enter and leave a room in Caitlin's shadow, how to hide in her room when she heard loud voices, how to eat a meal without looking up into anyone's eyes."
Have you ever read a book "all in one huge gulp?" A book SO good and yet so truly awful you just have to KEEP reading hoping and hoping the main character will be safe.
I do need to give a warning here. This book looks like it might suit a younger reader based on the title and cover art BUT as I said truly terrible things have happened to Sam and Caitlin. Jenn Reese reveals this carefully and slowly but the feelings of violence and stark fear lead me to say this book is really only suitable for mature readers aged 11+. Please take the time to read these reviews which will give you more plot details.
Rich and layered, this mix of fantasy and stark reality is powerful. Waking Brain Cells
Listen to an audio sample which begins on page 2 of the book. Jenn Reese talks about her book on her web site and shares the rules for the card game. The author note at the back of the book hints that, like Sam, Jenn had a troubled family.
Books with a similar tone to A Game of Fox and Squirrels
I have been struggling to remember this title - Takers and Returners by Carol Beach York. This is a very old book published in 1973 but the atmosphere of A Game of Fox and Squirrels made me think about this book I read years and years ago.
The Name at the end of the Ladder is another haunting book where a child must survive a frightening game.
Quicksand Pond also explores terrible abuse by a parent.
You might also explore these books about children taken into foster care:
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