First published 2005
Opal Buloni walks into the Winn-Dixie supermarket and walks out with a dog. The scruffy mutt is causing chaos in the produce aisle when she claims him as her own and names him after the store. Opal and her preacher father have just moved to Naomi, Florida, where she knows no one. Her mother left when Opal was three, and the silence around that loss sits heavy between father and daughter. Winn-Dixie becomes her companion as she explores the small town and meets its residents. There's Gloria Dump, who listens to stories in her overgrown garden, and Otis, who plays music for the animals in his pet store. The librarian Miss Franny Block tells tales of her family's past, while Amanda Wilkinson seems determined to stay unfriendly. As summer unfolds, Winn-Dixie helps Opal connect these lonely people to each other and to herself. Through friendship and loss, Opal begins to understand that everyone carries sadness, but they also carry the capacity for joy and love.
Genres: fiction, family-life, contemporary
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking, whimsical
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Naomi, Florida, Winn-Dixie
192 pages · Paperback · Gardners Books