I struggle with this one. It was highly recommended by my former children's lit professor, so it hurts to give it an unenthusiastic review.

It's a story about an orphaned groundling - a cute mix of child and fuzzy animal. Of course, they are horribly oppressed and discriminated against. The protagonist is a fox groundling, and he lives in a very cruel orphanage, oppressed by a shrill red-wigged woman. He goes by Thirteen, his orphan number, until he makes his first friend and she dubs him Arthur.

So Arthur and his pal Trinket manage to continue surviving and even escape the horrendous orphanage. But their life doesn't get easier, and when they separate, Arthur's life keeps getting worse, and worse, and worse and yes, even worse. It's very Oliver Twist-y but somehow even more depressing. It's pretty unbearable, actually, until about 85% through the book. Now I loved Oliver Twist when I read it as a kid, but this book's protagonist is so much more downtrodden that it was painful to read. Arthur does nothing to try to get out of his situation, and feebly reacts to the horrors around him. He's a lucky little bastard to be able to pull through in the end (as this is a children's book), and it's all thanks to his friends.

I loved Oliver Twist because he had agency, hope, and was a lovely character who was supported by interesting people and city life. This one is a lukewarm mix of Annie and Oliver that yes, has a lovely ending and is a tale of resilience, and some nice bits about music, but it's really not worth the 300+ pages of horribleness, unless you're a glutton for self-punishment. At least, not worth it for me. I'm honestly relieved to be done with it.