School Library Journal (Sat Oct 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

Gr 2-5 Mr. Fox likes books so much, he eats them with a bit of salt and pepper once he's finished reading. He discovers his local library, where he can read and eat as many books as he likes for free. But once the other patrons begin to complain about wet, smelly books with missing pages, the librarian puts a stop to his feeding/reading frenzy and kicks the voracious fox out for good. So Mr. Fox, with a ski mask and tote bag, heads for the local bookstore. "This is a holdup!" he says. "Fill my bag with books right now! If there's any funny business, I'll bite you in the bottom!" But his dinner is short-lived, as an officer arrests him during his seventh course. In jail, Mr. Fox is denied all reading material. After convincing the guard, Mr. Schultz, to bring him paper and pencil, Mr. Fox writes his own 923-page book. Mr. Schultz reads the novel and thankfully makes a secret copy, as Mr. Fox quickly devours the pages. Mr. Schultz is so impressed with Mr. Fox's work, he quits his job, starts a publishing company, and prints Mr. Fox's book. It is a best seller that becomes a hit movie, and Schultz and Fox both grow rich. Bold, colorful illustrations accompany text of varying sizes. Translated from German, this story may reach some of today's readers progressing from series like "Frog and Toad." But the audience for Mr. Fox might be limited. VERDICT A decidedly quirky selection, peppered with puns and a dash of bathroom humor. Mr. Fox is not a typical book lover, but some kids will find his tale entertaining. Lindsay Persohn, University of South Florida, Tampa

Horn Book (Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 CDT 2017)

This profoundly odd and unexpected little story, with its thick-black-lined and angular mixed-media illustrations, centers on a fox driven to a life of crime because of his (literal) appetite for books. Translated from the German, the text includes a surprising level of detail and subtle humor about the fox's visits to a library and bookstore, his prison stay, and his rise to fame.

ALA Booklist (Fri Jul 01 00:00:00 CDT 2016)

Mr. Fox loves books so much he devours them, and he is quickly banished from the library when librarians soon find chomp marks and slobbery pages. Despairingly, he robs a bookstore and is sent to jail. Deprived of reading material, he decides to write his own to eat. The resulting tome becomes a best-seller, and Mr. Fox has a new life surrounded by books. Once he's famous, Mr. Fox is quietly released from prison, and his criminal record swept under the carpet rhaps not the best message to send to young readers. The witty and wry illustrations, in addition, take a turn for the scatological when they include one of Mr. Fox on the toilet, in abdominal distress due to eating fast-food fliers. But for readers who enjoy quirky, imaginative outings, this is just the ticket.