Book Review: Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen is a must-read 2003 Newbery Honor Book. It follows the story of Roy Eberhardt, the new kid in school who has just moved to Florida. He’s picked on by bullies and hates the heat. But when one day he sees a boy about his age running out the bus window, Roy’s life changes. The boy is not wearing any shoes, not carrying a backpack and not carrying books. Who is this boy?

When strange things start occuring on a new pancake house’s construction site, the whole town is interested. Alligators show up in the porta-potties. Snakes start slithering around. Stakes are moved. Seats removed from heavy equipment. What is going on?

Roy eventually catches up with “the running boy” and learns the pancake house is about to be constructed on top of a protected owl species who burrows in the ground. And the running boy is the only one doing anything about it. Roy, wanting to help both the boy and the owl, gets involved and discovers the Environmental Impact Study done by the pancake house is missing from the courthouse, and the pancake house claims no owls live there.

When the dedication ceremony day arrives for the pancake house, Roy hatches a plan. He enlists the help of his school friends, and they form a protest. The running boy buries himself in a owl burrow, and when an owl lands on his head, no one can deny owls live there.

The theme of the book is stated nicely by Roy’s mother: “Sometimes you’re going to be faced with situations where the line isn’t clear between what’s right and what’s wrong. Your heart will tell you to do one thing, and your brain will tell you to do something different. In the end, all that’s left is to look at both sides and go with your best judgment.”

Great theme of standing up for what’s right even when others say you’re wrong, fighting authority when authority is wrong, and following what your heart says to do. Excellent book. Laugh-out-loud funny (like when Roy comments how adults lie to make themselves look more important). Easy to read and a quick pace. And who doesn’t love owls?