Fuchs.

by Matthew Sweeney

The day after I moved to the city I saw the fox. He was wrapped round the neck of a man, his red brush of a tail hanging down one side, his little head with its bright eyes on the other side. And the eyes were watching me - he was a living scarf!' Gerard is new to the city and new to his school. He is not getting on well at school and spends much time on his bike exploring his new neighbourhood. By chance he comes across a homeless man - and his live, pet fox. Gradually the man, boy and fox strike up a friendship, and Gerard finds he has much to learn from the man on the street. A touching, moving story about a boy learning more about the world - and growing up.

Hardcover

First published November 1, 2002

About the author

Matthew Sweeney was an Irish poet.

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.

Reviews

[Adam Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A good read.

[Eli · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was definitely a worthwhile choice. I picked it up in the library when had nothing better to read and it took me about 5 hours to read, with breaks inbetween to process the story. For what it was, I found that this book was a real eye-opener into the lives of homeless people and showed how, if we all shared the niave optimism of very young children, the world would be a much better place.

This book is shown from the point of view of a young irish boy named Gerard. He sees the man on the street within the first few lines of the book and from then on, a friendship develops. It is only at the end of the book that you really see the point behind Gerards story and the last few lines really captivated me.

I think that anyone should read this book, old or young.