The Midnight Fox (Puffin story books) [Paperback]

Betsy Byars (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 8 and up | Grade Level: 3 and up | Series: Puffin story books

Tom dislikes spending the summer on his aunt's farm until he discovers a black fox in the forest and tracks her to her den.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 8 and up
  
• Paperback: 144 pages
• Publisher: Puffin (July 30, 1981)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140314504
• ISBN-13: 978-0140314502
• Product Dimensions: 7.7 x 5.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #493,622 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #14 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Authors & Illustrators, A-Z > ( B ) > Byars, Betsy
  • #83 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Children's Books > Animals > Foxes & Wolves > Fiction

More About the Author

Betsy Byars began her writing career rather late in life First, she married and started a family. The writing career didn't emerge until she was 28, a mother of two children, and living in a small place she called the barracks apartment, in Urbana, Illinois. She and her husband, Ed, had moved there in 1956 so he could attend graduate school at the University of Illinois. She was bored, had no friends, and so turned to writing to fill her time. Byars started writing articles for The Saturday Evening Post, Look,and other magazines. As her family grew and her children started to read, she began to write books for young people and, fortunately for her readers, discovered that there was more to being a writer than sitting in front of a typewriter. "Once a wanderer came by my house and showed me how to brush my teeth with a cherry twig; that went in The House of WingsThe Summer of the Swans." Since that time, Byars has written more than 45 books for young readers and has won numerous awards, including The American Book Award, which she received in 1981 for The Night Swimmers. The humor, compassion, and insight Byars brings to each of her books won her a large audience of admirers both in the United States and abroad. Six of her novels were presented on national television, and her books are translated into nine languages. Six of Byars' novels have been named ALA Notable Books, and in 1971, The Summer of the Swans -- a story about a 14-year-old girl and her mentally retarded brother -- won the Newbery Award as the most distinguished contribution to literature for children in the year of its publication. Byars was born in Charlotte, North Carolina, on August 7, 1928. Unlike many of the characters in her books, Byars grew up in a normal, loving family. Her father was an engineer and worked as a bookkeeper in a cotton mill. He was stern and hardworking and had a strong sense of humor. Her mother was a lively woman who loved acting and music. Byars's sister, Nancy, two years older, was sometimes an inspiration and sometimes an evil nemesis. Byars has always been adventurous and never allows a few setbacks to prevent her from doing things she wants to experience, like petting a blacksnake and flying planes. The snake was named Moon and became the subject of her 1991 autobiography, The Moon and I. Betsy Byars and her husband live on an air strip in South Carolina, and have traveled widely throughout the United States in pursuit of their interest in gliding and antique airplanes. They have four grown children and seven grandchildren.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Foxy Loxy, January 23, 2005

By 

E. R. Bird "Ramseelbird" (Manhattan, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Midnight Fox (Puffin story books) (Paperback)

Back in 1968, I think it's fair to say that your average male hero in children's fiction was usually an athletic or at least agile young man. The Hardy Boys, after all, were still popular and the degree of introspection most young men in today's fiction are apt to was significantly less. Not so the hero of Betsy Byars's, "The Midnight Fox". A small unassuming but still interesting book from the last 60s, the tale is of an unathletic average boy, his summer spent on a farm in the country, and his chance encounters with a mysterious woodland creature. There is no magic. No mystical occurrences or significant coincidences. Just ordinary people acting and reacting to one another and the appearance of the animal that divides them.

Tom is under the distinct impression that animals of all sorts, regardless of species or family, hate him. And this is just one of the myriad of reasons Tom does not want to stay on his Aunt Millie and Uncle Fred's farm. He'll be far away from his best friend, alone with family members he hardly knows, and he'll probably get loaded down with chores. Still, Tom's parents are adamant, so it's off to the farm for a couple months he goes. Of course, nothing is as bad as he had anticipated. His relatives are sweethearts, his chores miniscule and his best friend is writing him regularly. As for animals, Tom meets one that becomes his summer fixation. Living on the acres of land surrounding the farm is a rare and beautiful black fox with a single cub. Intrigued by this elusive creature, the boy discovers her lair and protects her secret. But when the fox angers the family by making off with a few chickens, Tom has to figure out exactly what to do to save his new friend from people with excellent fox-tracking skills.

Confession time: This is the first Betsy Byars book I've ever read. I know her name is often synonymous with great children's writers everywhere. And I know that not having read, "The Summer of the Swans" yet I'm probably going to earn the pity of children's librarians everywhere. But honestly I didn't know what to expect from her as an author. What I found, to my delight, was a writer who's not afraid to use humor while tapping into childhood fears. Tom's remarkable in some ways because he's just an average guy. He can't swim, can't run very fast, and isn't a fan of sports particularly. His best friend Petie (who conjures up fake headlines like, "BOY FALLS DOWN BANK WHILE GIRL ONLOOKERS CHEER", to describe his everyday experiences) is just as interesting as Tom and provides a lot of comic relief in this tale. But best of all, this book tapped into one of my favorite kiddie lit conventions. It didn't include a villain. Oh, it includes adults doing thoughtless acts without realizing how they affect the children around them, sure. But no one here is a bad guy. And no one here ends up as the evil nefarious fox hunter or anything like that. If there had been someone like that in this book, it probably would've tipped this book dangerously into the world of melodrama. Oog. Fortunately, this is not the case and "Midnight Fox" just strikes the reader as a good well-written piece o' work.

Now, if you know a kid who's into foxes and the like, this isn't a bad book to hand them. Fortunately, a love of those animals is not a requirement. This is just a good read for anyone. Boys and girls alike. It has an exciting conclusion, some spots of beautiful writing, and likable characters. It will charm any and all comers, regardless of age.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Great Book, April 7, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Midnight Fox (Hardcover)

In the book, The Midnight Fox, There are four main characters.Their names are, Tom, the black fox, Aunt Millie, and lastly UncleFred. Tom, a 10 year old boy, goes for the summer to his Aunt Millie's farm. He discovers a fascinating black fox while he reads letters from his best friend under a tree, in the orchard. He watches the black fox queitly without moving under a tree, in the orchard throughout the summer. Tom goes to the farm because his parents want to go to Europe without him. Tom's parents send him away to the farm, until they get back from Europe. The book has a few pros and cons of th story. It is a good book because it is about a fox, and I love reading about animals. It puts you in suspense, and gets more interesting by the page. However, the only bad thing is that u dont know what happens to the black fox when she leaves the farm for good. I think since the story is mainly about the black fox, the author should say where the fox goes, and what she does. There are a few pros and cons of the story that has to do with the way the story is written. Firstly, the story has nice short chapters which is a great thing. It is good because if the chapters were really long, people would get bored of the book. Secondly, the book is also very well written. It is good because the printing is very big and that makes the book much easier to read. For some people, it is a bad thing but for me that is good. Lastly, the narrator is the main character in the book and I like that because I can learn more about that person. However, a con of the writing is that there are many confusing passages with information that needs to be inferred.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An outstanding book that has stood the test of time, December 29, 2000

By 

stuartm "stuartm" (United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Midnight Fox (Puffin story books) (Paperback)

I read this as a child and again recently as a father. Betsy Byars does an incredible job of capturing the confused, angry feelings of a young boy left on a farm for the summer by his parents. The main character may resemble today's kids even more than those of my youth - imagine asking a kid today to leave his TV, VCR and videogames for a whole summer! The twist comes when the young boy sees a black fox and gets caught up in this fox's life. The boy grows up by learning to care for something other than himself and in so doing affects everyone.