I read this because it's frequently on the area schools' required reading lists, and I'm really glad I did. It's a really heartwarming read, and I loved it. Kids should be able to easily identify with the book's heroine, and Winn-Dixie is a flawed but lovable hero, all on his own. Great kid reading. DiCamillo is rapidly becoming one of my favorite writers.

Spoilers to follow, for parents:
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Nothing bad happens to Winn-Dixie. The story has a happy ending. It becomes scary at the end, when the possibility arises that the dog has run away and been lost forever, and children may find this very upsetting, but the dog is found safe and sound, and everything ends very well.

The story deals peripherally with child abandonment, in that Opal's mother did not want to be a preacher's wife and left her husband and child when Opal was too small to remember her. Opal's father is a very kind and patient man who welcomes Winn-Dixie into their lives. The story deals with issues of friendship, trust, love, and touches on abandonment. Again, the story has a happy ending.