Pax, Journey Home by Sara Pennypacker and Jon Klassen, reviewed by Jude

Pax Journey Home is a beautiful story about the bond between a fox and a boy. This is the sequel to Pax, which tells the story of how the boy met the fox.  In this book, after being separated for a long time, the boy and the fox are drawn back towards each other.

Peter the boy is a bit lost after his tragic back story and Pax the fox is enjoying the births of his new family. At the beginning, I found this book quite hard to get into, partly because I haven’t  read the first book (though you don’t really need to have read it ). Once I did get going, I found their friendship amazing and touching. I loved the ending and found it really moving. Overall, I really liked this book, especially the way it takes it in turns to tell the boy’s side and the fox’s side of things.  

I think if you enjoy stories about the bonds between animals and humans and feel like you’re getting too old for pet stories like the Holly Webb animal books, then this is the perfect book as it’s a little bit more grown-up. 

Jude is 10 and lives in Brighton. Jude is a keen nature enthusiast and doesn’t just like the cute animals. He likes loads of authors and especially loves  J.R.R Tolkien, David Walliams, Roald Dahl, Ross Montgomery , Derek Landy , Michel Rosen , Katie & Kevin  Tsang , J.K Rowling , Tim Tilley and SF Said. Jude really loves exciting adventure stories but in real life, rather than being slaughtered by goblins, he would rather live in the One Hundred Acre Woods with Winnie the Pooh. The character he would least like to be stuck in a lift with is ChildChewer from The BFG.

About the book

From bestselling and award-winning author Sara Pennypacker comes the long-awaited sequel to Pax; gorgeously crafted, utterly compelling with stunning illustrations by award-winning author and illustrator Jon Klassen.

It’s been a year since Peter and his pet fox, Pax, have seen each other. Once inseparable, they now lead very different lives. Pax must protect his litter of kits in a dangerous world. Meanwhile Peter, orphaned after the war, has left his adopted home and joined the Water Warriors, a group determined to heal the land from the scars of the war.

When one of Pax’s kits falls desperately ill, he turns to the one human he knows he can trust. And no matter how hard Peter tries to harden his broken heart, love keeps finding a way in. Now both boy and fox find themselves on journeys toward home, healing – and each other.
A breathtaking novel about chosen families and the healing power of love.