I think this book is very inspiring story. The main character India Opal learns to not judge a book by its cover. She feels so lonely because her dad is preoccupied and they had just moved to a new town in Florida. So she befriended a dog, who would be friendly to any new person it encountered, therefore it gave India Opal a chance to meet new people. As she meets these new people she realizes she isn't the only one with a lonely and sad past, all the other people do it. The trailer park owner is tired of having the dog around and calls the pound to take it away. As soon as India Opal's dad see how upset she is, he calls the pound and has them return it. A storm finally comes and Winn-Dixie is terrified and runs away. After searching for the dog and not finding it, she immediately blames her father for everyone running away from her, including the mother and dog. I think this is a good book for older children to read. This book could help suffering children understand things a little better. As the main character grows up a little, she learns to let go of the past and forgive others because bad things happen sometimes. This book touches upon many senstivie subjects kids might not know how to deal with, but by reading this it helps them realize it isn't just happening to them. The book itself is not very long, I would considered a very quick read because the font on the pages is bigger and doesn't take up the whole page. Even though she was afraid of disappointing her father, her new friendships help her have the courage to finally ask her father about her mother abandoning them.