The true story behind it
This one comes from a night I won’t forget. When our son was about a year old, he had a very high fever for two days. In the middle of the night his little body got so hot that we called his doctor, an older lady doctor who lived about 40 kilometers away, and she told us to take him to the hospital right away.
I still remember carrying him in for a scan. When I took off his t-shirt, he said, “Daddy, it’s so cold, I’m shivering, it’s hard for me, it’s hard.” My wife cried. Her mother and younger sister came with us and stayed close. The doctors treated him, and within about a day he was well again.
That fear, and the relief after it, is where Rustle came from: a father fox whose cubs won’t get better, searching for the Grand Fox and her medicine. In my mind, the Grand Fox is our son’s doctor.
What happens in the story
Rustle the fox is worried sick. His three cubs are so ill they can’t even stand, and he has tried everything. Only the Grand Fox knows the cure, and she lives far away, deep in the Misty Mountain Forest, along a path that isn’t safe.
Kitty and Dino set off with him. Kitty parts a rushing river so they can cross on dry ground. Dino grows a trail of glowing blue mushrooms through thick fog. At a cliff that looks too steep to climb, Kitty pushes out rock steps and Dino wraps them in strong vines.
The Grand Fox, who has nine long tails, tells them the cure is a golden flower that opens only under moonlight, and only if it gets cold, then heat, then healing magic. Dino gives it all three, the flower opens, and a few drops of its golden water bring the cubs back to running and playing.
Looking for a children’s book about foxes?
Foxes in stories are nearly always sly. Rustle is just a worried dad, and that makes him easy for a child to care about.
It’s a gentle way into a hard feeling: being scared when someone you love is sick. The story keeps it hopeful the whole way, and Dino says it plainly at the end: “We can always have hope, even when things look hard.”
Look inside
Flip through the opening pages of the book.
Questions to ask after reading
A few questions for the minute after the book closes. There are no wrong answers.
- Rustle was worried about his cubs. What helps you feel better when someone you love is sick?
- The path had a river, fog and a cliff. Which part would you have found hardest?
- The flower needed cold, then heat, then healing. Can you remember who did each one?
Perfect for
- ✓ Kids who need a little do-not-give-up courage
- ✓ Talking about kindness and helping family
- ✓ Little ones who love a magical quest
- ✓ A warm, hopeful bedtime read
Quick answers
A brave story about never giving up
One short story. One worried fox and a journey worth making. Ready for tonight.
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