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Hoot: Summary and book reviews of Hoot by Carl Hiaasen, plus links to an excerpt from Hoot and a biography of Carl Hiaasen.

Hoot

Hoot
by Carl Hiaasen
Hardcover: Sep 2002,
229 pages.
Paperback: May 2004,
304 pages.

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BOOK SUMMARY

Unfortunately, Roy’s first acquaintance in Florida is Dana Matherson, a well-known bully. Then again, if Dana hadn’t been sinking his thumbs into Roy’s temples and mashing his face against the school-bus window, Roy might never have spotted the running boy. And the running boy is intriguing: he was running away from the school bus, carried no books, and–here’s the odd part–wore no shoes. Sensing a mystery, Roy sets himself on the boy’s trail. The chase introduces him to potty-trained alligators, a fake-fart champion, some burrowing owls, a renegade eco-avenger, and several extremely poisonous snakes with unnaturally sparkling tails.

Roy has most definitely arrived in Carl Hiaasen’s Florida.

Media Reviews

  Audio File
We know how it will end, but in his inimitable fashion, Hiaasen has crafted a delicious screwball comedy for all ages--and Chad Lowe's performance is a hoot.

  School Library Journal - Miranda Doyle
Packed with quirky characters and improbable plot twists, Hiaasen's first novel for young readers is entertaining but ultimately not very memorable.....Students looking for humorous, offbeat characters and situations will probably prefer Louis Sachar's Holes (Farrar, 1998) or books by Daniel Pinkwater. Gr 6-9

  Booklist - Bill Ott
...Hiaasen lets his inner kid run rampant, both the subversive side that loves to see grown-ups make fools of themselves and the righteously indignant side, appalled at the mess being made of our planet.... He deserves a warm welcome into children's publishing.

  Publishers Weekly
Characteristically quirky characters and comic twists will surely gain the author new fans, though their attention may wander during his narrative's intermittently protracted focus on several adults... dollops of humor, help make the novel quite a hoot indeed. Ages 10-up.

Recent Reader Reviews

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by kamaya harrington
hoot
I like hoot because its fascinating.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Siva
Hoot review
Hoot is a very good book for people that like animals. It's got snakes with tails that are sparkly and it's got people that try to save owls. Hoot is an extraordinary book about owls.

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by Jessica Belle
Hoot
I think that Hoot is a great book and it shows what people will do for money and what people will do for animals. The Burrowing Owl is actually endangered though so it is factual. I think that is should be (if it isn't already) realistic fiction....   Read More

Rated 5 of 5 of 5 by sydney bennett
hoot by sydney bennett
This book is very interesting. It gives you lots of reasons to keep reading it, and even more reasons to tell someone about it. The best part was I read it to my class and we all laughed together!

Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by meme
Pretty Good
I liked this book a lot because it grabbed my attention at once. Also, it is a good book for a book talk and is very easy to understand. I do not think that this book uses horrible language. I have read a lot of better written books, though. :)

Rated 4 of 5 of 5 by Katepault
This book made me feel better
I read this book and I found it interesting. It may had a different vocabulary from what I'm used to but it was a nice chance for me. I saw this book in the school library and I liked the cover. What made me the first impression was the summary of...   Read More

...49 More Reader Reviews

Readalikes Full readalike results are for members only

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These are 2 of the 5 readalike suggestions for Hoot. Members have full access to all readalikes. If you are a member, please login. To find out more about membership, click here.

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