The Underneath, by Kathi AppeltI didn't cry, and I don't know if it was because I finished it on the T, or was lifted by the thoughts of more adventures to come. I'm not usually one for fantastical stories with animals as main characters, but this one had a mix of reality and legend that sometimes took my breath away. I'm not sure it will live on in my mind up there with Where the Red Fern Grows (as I read it was compared to, which compelled me to get this book Right Away) - but there was a hound, and kittens, love and loss, and words that were put together in ways that will make this story hard to forget. Newbery?
