Review: A Game of Fox and Squirrels by Jenn Reese

A Game of Fox and Squirrels by Jenn Reese

on April 2020
Genres: Middle Grade
Pages: 224
Format: Hardcover
Source: Bought
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After an incident shatters their family, eleven-year old Samantha and her older sister Caitlin are sent to live in rural Oregon with an aunt they've never met. Sam wants nothing more than to go back to the way things were… before she spoke up about their father's anger.

When Aunt Vicky gives Sam a mysterious card game called "A Game of Fox & Squirrels," Sam falls in love with the animal characters, especially the charming trickster fox, Ashander. Then one day Ashander shows up in Sam’s room and offers her an adventure and a promise: find the Golden Acorn, and Sam can have anything she desires.

But the fox is hiding rules that Sam isn't prepared for, and her new home feels more tempting than she'd ever expected. As Sam is swept up in the dangerous quest, the line between magic and reality grows thin. If she makes the wrong move, she'll lose far more than just a game.

Reese’s new book is part fairy tale, part recovery story and all heart. The story follows two sisters as they navigate a new life after being separated from their parents because of abuse. There is a fox, and there are squirrels and riddles the young Samantha must answer in order to fulfill her one true desire: to go back home.

But mostly, this story is about survival. It’s about the family you make along the way and how much stronger you really are.

I really liked watching how different the girls handled they situations and how the fox and squirrel game came into the story. Samantha’s healing and also her desire to go back to her parents is palpable and underlies the entire book, contradicting what she thinks she wants and perhaps what she knows deep down what is really best for them. The writing is very strong and it was incredibly easy to get lost into Samantha’s world.

The illustrations throughout the story, and the COVER! OMG that cover! are gorgeous and really added another level to my enjoyment of the book.

I am slightly disappointed that they’re not selling specific card decks to play this game. There was an insert with rules on how to play the game with a regular set of playing cards, but honestly, the descriptions and illustrations of the game were so beautiful, I really really want real ones!

Overall, the story is a full heart, brimming with love that we need and life lessons and survival that only a fox (and squirrels) could show you. I highly recommend to everyone.