Ereth's Birthday
by Avi

The fourth book in the Tales from Dimwood Forest focuses on your favorite, free-swearing, prickly porcupine, Ereth. Feeling ignored by Poppy and her family on his birthday, Ereth moodily stalks off into the forest in search of salt. Instead, he finds a vixen caught in a trap, and her dying wish is for Ereth to find her three kits and take care of them.

Grumblingly, grudgingly, Ereth does so, forming a most unlikely family circle with sprightly young foxes Tumble, Nimble, and Flip. He swears that it's only until their ne'er-do-well father returns from wherever his "business" has taken him. Together the prickly vegetarian and the inexperienced little hunters learn to live in a harsh winter environment where, among the many other dangers, humans have left numerous traps in their neighborhood.

Besides all that, Ereth is being stalked by one of a porcupine's few natural enemies: a large, weasel-like killer named Marty the Fisher. And as far as Marty is concerned, it's only a matter of time until the old porky exposes his soft underbelly...especially when he tries to indulge his one obsession: salt.

When they finally come face to face, it's hard to decide what you want to happen. After all, fishers are an endangered species. But Ereth has learned so much and come so far from the selfish, crotchety creature he was when we first met him. Their final battle has pretty high stakes, then. For us readers, a lot hangs on whether Ereth's birthday ends up being a happy one or not...

Robbie Fischer
Arizona USA

Recommended Age: 10+

If you would like to contact Robbie, you may do so here.