FINALLY finished this book that I started with my daughter back in May. We're slow readers together, and then we let it fall off during the summer, but she's back in school so we dove back in and finished it up last week. That being said, we both really love this one. It's somber and emotional, and my ten-year-old continually told me that "this book is too sad to be a kids book." But I love a good found-family story, and in addition to the wonderful characters we met, the prose was beautifully poetic. I also appreciate the way the author speaks on animal cruelty in a way that children can grasp without being overly gruesome or detailed. It felt like a fine line to walk and she nailed it.