Fox in a Trap

An evocative sequel to The Comeback Dog, in which Daniel learns that the adventures he craves have a price. He has grown up on the farm and is afraid of being rooted there. When his parents show him how to grow a hybrid peach tree he turns away; if he does it right, will it be his job forever? His Uncle Pete travels constantly, writing, hunting, fishingand Daniel begs him to go trapping. But he is sickened by the baiting of the trap with dead kittens, suffocating the trapped fox to spare the pelt and finding the chewed-off leg of a fox that escaped. Uncle Pete is understanding, and Daniel's parents promise to let him grow, even if that growth takes him away from the farming life. This is a book of earthy descriptions and haunting images of the orchard, the farm and the trapping. Thomas leaves readers with much to ponder and discover. Ages 811. (April)