Moon can hunt, fish, trap, and make his own coon-skin cap, but when his Pap dies he is forced to find his place in the world. Life is nothing like his forest home. At ten, Moon finds himself at odds with the law, the state, and even himself.

When I picked up Alabama Moon I anticipated a light-hearted Jungle Book adventure, but from the first chapter I was drawn into Moon’s struggle with society and couldn’t put the book down.

I recommend Alabama Moon for mature middle and high school readers.

Watt Key gives parents a platform to discuss serious issues with our children which are more relevant today than the author might’ve expected. Death of parents, violent legal authorities, child abuse, and the war in Vietnam are some of the topics raised in this story.

But Alabama Moon is also about resourcefulness, friendship, trust, and hope.

Key, Watt. Alabama Moon. Square Fish, an Imprint of MacMillan, 2010. 

Kipling, Rudyard. The Jungle Book. Ladybird Books, 2014.