Because of Winn-Dixie (novel)

Hello there. Can you smell that? It’s the wonderful smell of fresh paper and new adventures. My pages are so crisp and clean they make a little crinkle-crackle sound when you turn them. If you look at my cover, you’ll see a bright picture of a girl with a big, happy smile and a huge, scruffy dog who looks like he just rolled in the mud and loved every second of it. Right now, I’m sitting on a shelf, patiently waiting. I’m just bursting with words and feelings, like a bottle of fizzy soda waiting to be opened. I get so excited thinking about the moment a child just like you will pick me up, run their fingers over my cover, and open me up to discover the world inside. I am a story, a friend you haven't met yet. My name is Because of Winn-Dixie.

My story began with a wonderful woman named Kate DiCamillo. She was my creator. During the very cold winter of 1999, Kate was living in a place with lots of snow and felt a little bit lonely. More than anything, she wished she had a dog to keep her company and make her laugh. But she couldn't have a dog where she lived. So, what did she do? She decided to imagine one. She grabbed her pen and started writing about a big, funny-looking dog with a heart full of love. A dog who smiled so big it looked like he was about to sneeze. She named him Winn-Dixie, after a grocery store. Then, Kate imagined a ten-year-old girl named India Opal Buloni, who had just moved to a new town in sunny Florida and was feeling lonely, too. Opal needed a friend just as much as Kate did. Kate’s feelings and ideas poured onto my pages like sunshine. She created the whole town of Naomi, Florida, with its friendly librarian, a lady who talks to trees, and so many other special people for Opal and Winn-Dixie to meet. She worked hard, writing every day, and when she was all done, I was ready to be shared with the world for the first time in the year 2000.

Once I was printed, I began a great journey. I traveled from bookshelves to libraries to cozy bedsides, into the hands of children all over the world. My story about Opal and Winn-Dixie showed kids that feeling lonely is something everyone feels sometimes, but that friendship can pop up when you least expect it—even in the vegetable aisle of a grocery store. Readers would laugh when Winn-Dixie knocked over a display of tomatoes, and they would feel a little sad with Opal when she missed her mom. I brought smiles and sometimes even happy tears. In the year 2001, I was given a very special award called a Newbery Honor. That’s like getting a shiny gold star for being a book that touches people’s hearts. My story became so well-loved that it was even made into a movie. Imagine that. The characters that lived inside my paper pages were now walking and talking on a big screen. I am more than just paper and ink; I am a reminder that a good friend, whether they have two legs or four, can change everything and help you feel like you truly belong.