Summary from Goodreads:
From bestselling and award-winning author Sara Pennypacker comes the long-awaited sequel to Pax; this is a gorgeously crafted, utterly compelling novel about chosen families and the healing power of love.
It’s been a year since Peter and his pet fox, Pax, have seen each other. Once inseparable, they now lead very different lives. Pax and his mate, Bristle, have welcomed a litter of kits they must protect in a dangerous world. Meanwhile Peter—newly orphaned after the war, wracked with guilt and loneliness—leaves his adopted home with Vola to join the Water Warriors, a group of people determined to heal the land from the scars of the war.
When one of Pax's kits falls desperately ill, he turns to the one human he knows he can trust. And no matter how hard Peter tries to harden his broken heart, love keeps finding a way in. Now both boy and fox find themselves on journeys toward home, healing—and each other, once again.
Review:
Both the first Pax book, and this sequel surprised me in pleasant ways. I’m not typically an animal book reader. But, I love these books. There’s something so clever about the way Pennypacker writes the point of view of Pax. If you’ve ever owned a dog, and thought they could just read your mind….it’s like that, but even more believable.
Anyway, it did take me a little longer to get into this book. It was somehow darker and more intense than Book 1. Peter had a lot to go through, and I found myself enjoying the fox chapters more, which are much briefer and more hopeful. Pax has no idea that the water is polluted. And he wouldn’t just leave his new family like Peter decides to do. I guess part of my initial problem was that I was angry with Peter and I wasn’t sure I wanted a second book where I was just going to be upset with the kid the whole time.
I’m glad I kept reading though. Of course I wasn’t upset with him the whole time. Of course, my heart ached for Peter and I wanted him to get through all of his grief and find help and friendships along the way. Then there’s the whole wanting him to reunite with his furry friend. The moment they see each other again for the first time was just magic. I pretty much clutched the library book to my chest and took a deep breath before I could keep reading.
Maybe this book has a deeper meaning for me now that I have a dog again. Maybe I connected to it so strongly because my community has terrible water, and this past year my husband and I had spent some money on a fancy water filter. Regardless, I found myself really connecting to this book and feeling sad when it was over -the true markings of a wonderful kids book. The few sweet illustrations by Jon Klassen are interwoven between the pages again. Writing this review now, after having read two more books since, I still feel drawn to this book. It’s just so heart-warming.
You cannot read this book without reading the first Pax book. And if you haven’t read Pax, what are you waiting for? I give this sequel a 9/10.
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