Hoot by Carl Hiaason

Reviewed by Adam P

14-year-old Roy Eberhardt is new to Coconut Cove, and he is already getting bullied. As his face is smushed up against the school bus window, he sees a barefoot boy sprint past the bus stop. He has so many questions, but the running boy is already gone.

Hoot is a truly great read about a boy who saves burrowing owls’ homes from getting paved over for a new Pancake House, Mother Paula’s. At the future site of the Pancake House, the construction stakes are constantly being yanked up by someone. Does the running boy have anything to do with it?

The first reason why I liked this amazing work of realistic fiction is that the book gets you to think about the environment. In all of Hiaasen’s books, the antagonist is in some way harming the environment, and the protagonist tries to stop the antagonist from destroying the amazing features of our Earth.

Another reason why I loved this interesting book is that I really like animals, and the fact that the main character would do so much just for little owls is really cool. He investigates further and goes to the city hall. He searches and searches, but he cannot find the file showing paving over owls’ burrows is illegal. He later leads a protest to show Florida what the Pancake House is doing.

I would recommend this book and Hiaasen’s other books like Chomp, Scat, and Flush to anyone who loves mystery and adventure. I would rate this awesome novel a 10/10. I hope you enjoy this book as much as I did!

Alfred A. Knopf Publishing, 292 pages