Yes, this book left us with one small sign of hope. I would have preferred to say goodbye to Poppy and Ereth while also preserving the knowledge that future generations of wildlife would make their homes and find their own adventures within the same forest.

I think a forest fire as a central plot element was good, but was it really necessary to burn the whole forest down? Destroying all of Dimwood Forest seemed too final, as if the end of our time with Poppy should be equivalent to the end of Dimwood Forest, period. His bizarre speech and behavior at Poppy's 'funeral' seemed to be out of character for him. Yes, he was grumpy and short-tempered, but he loved Poppy, and he was not self-centered. So, what happened to him!?Įreth, one of my favorite characters throughout the series, also left me feeling disappointed. Moreover, Mephitis's complete absence was particularly troublesome because the previous book led us to believe that he and Ereth would be living together, like a family. At the very least, it would have been nice to find out if they ever did visit Ereth.

A passing mention was made of the three foxes, but I would have liked to have seen them interact with Ereth again. In the introduction, the author specifically states that he 'worked hard to join many of the characters, events, and memories of the previous five books.' With that kind of set-up, I was especially disappointed that Mephitis, Nimble, Tumble, and Flip did not appear in this book. This is the last book of the Tales of Dimwood Forest series. “Thoroughly enjoyable…sure to please old fans and will likely win some new ones.*** Warning: This review contains SPOILERS!! *** The colorful creatures of Avi's legendary imagination spring to life with narrator John McDonough's warm, grandfatherly reading. This is the highly anticipated sequel to Avi's Horn Book Award-winning, best-selling Poppy. Of course, it can be very helpful to have a porcupine on your side. Once again it is up to Poppy to save the day. Greedy, dam-building beavers are taking over their valley home. But when Poppy reaches her destination, she finds that Ragweed's family is in trouble. Along the way, Poppy meets a charming golden mouse who looks like Ragweed, and together on the meadow, they dance a silent dance of love at first sight. With her grumpy, but loyal porcupine friend Ereth by her side, the spirited deermouse sets out on a journey that will test her courage, but also lead her to a new love. Now she intends to travel west, to tell Ragweed's family the sad news. Poppy has saved the creatures of Dimwood Forest from the terrible owl who killed her beloved Ragweed.

Poppy and rye avi