87 pages 2 hours read

Carl Hiaasen

Hoot

Fiction | Novel | Middle Grade | Published in 2002

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Introduction

Hoot

  • Genre: Fiction; middle grade adventure
  • Originally Published: 2002
  • Reading Level/Interest: Lexile 760L; grades 5-8
  • Structure/Length: 21 chapters and epilogue; approx. 292 pages; approx. 6 hours, 25 minutes on audio
  • Protagonist and Central Conflict: Roy Eberhardt, who has recently moved from Montana to Coconut Cove, Florida, looks out the school bus window and sees a boy running. He follows him a few days later and learns that the boy, Mullet, is working to prevent a vacant lot from being bulldozed to build a pancake restaurant because the lot is home to some burrowing owls. Roy is gradually drawn into Mullet’s crusade and his troubled family life.
  • Potential Sensitivity Issues: Underage smoking; bullying

Carl Hiaasen, Author

  • Bio: Born and raised in Florida, where he still lives; graduated from the University of Florida; worked as a reporter for the Miami Herald; writes novels for both children and adults; his books have been published in 34 languages
  • Other Works: Tourist Season (1986); Flush (2005); Chomp (2012); Squirm (2018)
  • Awards: Newbery Honor Book (2003); ALA Notable Children’s Book (2003)

CENTRAL THEMES connected and noted throughout this Teaching Unit:

  • Handling Problems Alone
  • Adjusting to a New Place
  • Standing Up to Callous Corporations

STUDY OBJECTIVES: In accomplishing the components of this Unit, students will:

  • Develop an understanding of the social and cultural contexts regarding conservation that incite Roy’s conflict.