The Underneath by Kathi Appelt. illustrated by David Small. 336 p. Atheneum Books for Young Readers/ Simon & Schuster, January, 2020. 9781416950592. (Own.)
#tbt features The Underneath by Kathi Appelt. The only thing worse than a dog dying in a book is a dog that is mistreated. The setting in this emotionally intense debut novel is, literally, the underneath, as in the underneath of the beat up shack in the bayou that a nasty man named Gar Face inhabits.
Ranger, his old hound has been chained up there as an alarm of sorts, since he can no longer go out on hunting trips. The reason Ranger can't hunt is because he was accidentally shot by Gar Face. Gar Face is obsessed with tracking the Alligator King. When a pregnant calico cat shows up underneath the shack, Ranger is fearful that Gar Face will use the cat and her eventual kittens as gator bait. He urges them to leave, but when they insist on staying, he's not disappointed because he is lonely. He warns the mama cat and her two kittens that they must never, under any circumstances, leave the safety of the underneath.
But kittens, are by nature, curious and Puck ventures out. There will be tears. The story unfolds slowly through three strands, which also includes the story of ancient bayou denizens.
The Underneath won a Newbery Honor, was a National Book Award Finalist and was added to many "best" lists, including ALA Notables and NY Public Library's Best list.
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