The Underneath

By Kathi Appelt
Illustrated by David Small
Atheneum Books
May 2008 Ages 9-12


So many things have been said about this book already, I could simply employ the use of ditto marks here and be done with it. But that would be no fun, so here it is.

Few books bring me to the point where I simply must sit still after reading and continue to float on the graceful language still swirling in my brain. To call Kathi Appelt's The Underneath graceful isn't enough, though. One must also use the words musical, mythic, aural, haunting, thoughtful, true.

There are two stories, one of an unlikely family of cats and a hound dog living underneath a bad man's porch. Much of this narrative involves the journey of a kitten who made the mistake of venturing from The Underneath despite so many warnings. There is a death in the beginning of the story which creates unpredictability and an uneasiness throughout.

The other story is of enigmatic Grandmother Moccasin, a snake living in a jar tangled in the roots deep underneath a loblolly pine (yes, loblolly. Don't get me started on Appelt's deftness with the setting of this thing). Grandmother is a shape shifter and has been in the jar for a thousand years. Appelt slowly reveals her backstory until it wraps around the other story of these cats and this dog. Loss, redemption, atonement. And don't forget the Alligator King. There is much folklore here.

David Small's illustrations are beautiful and only make the story even more rich. The image of the little girl on the beach is particularly moving. Though this book wants to be read aloud, it is not bedtime reading for your five year old. Not for a five year old at all really. We're talking sadder than Charlotte's Web.


I know, theoretically, no novel is absolutely perfect, but love is blind. And I love this book. I do.