1. BIBLIOGRAPHY
DiCamillo, Kate, and Graeme Malcolm. 2005. The Tale of Despereaux. Unabridged Audio. New York, NY: Random House Listening Library. ISBN: 1400099137
2. PLOT SUMMARY
Despereaux, an unlikely hero, is betrayed by his brother and father and sent to die in the rat filled dungeon. In this dark stench dungeon, he sets out on a quest to save the Princess Pea. She has been taken captive by a rat, Roscuro, and a servant girl, Miggery Sow who desire to fulfill divine comeuppance. Despereaux sets out to do the impossible; he faces the grave dangers of the dungeon to rescue his fair lady with a spool of red thread, a needle, and love.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Kate DiCamillo has written a fantasy Newbery Medal book the mixes together ingredients that will stir your soul. She was able to spin this tale in a way that you forget that the hero or protagonist, is a mouse. The book is divided into four books each book elaborating on a character and settings to spin the tale and weave it together. The first book is about Despereaux, how unthinkably different and disappointing he is to his family and what love does to his heart. Book two introduces us to Chiaroscuro or Roscuro the rat. Roscuro has been groomed for dismay, darkness, and torturous gloom but when a spark of light enters his soul he is forever changed. Book three is the tale of Miggery Sow. This poor girl, named after her father’s prized pig, is traded into slavery by her father for a handful of cigarettes, a red tablecloth, and a hen. Her greatest desire is to become a princess although what Miggery Sow wanted was of no concern to anyone. Book four wraps up each story. Princess Pea’s character was intertwined in each book and now the ultimate solution to each characters problem is solved to a degree together.
Illustrator, Timothy Basil Ering has sketched pencil drawings of the characters throughout the book. Each illustration offers a glimpse into the lives and personalities of the characters. The pictures capture moments in the book that add to the drama of the story and allows the reader to picture and envision the characters which I enjoyed and appreciated.
The narrator, Graeme Malcolm, has an eloquent dialect to his voice. The sound quality is superb. The audio book uses music that adds drama at the beginning and end of the story. Malcolm uses distinct voice to reflect each character. I especially enjoyed the French accent he used for Despereaux’s mother Antoinette. The narration is over three hours long and placed on three CD’s. I appreciated the story being available in audio book format. This is due to the difficult dialect and language used. The language is somewhat hard to read and even to listen to at times. The narrator asks questions like, “Listener do you know what the word perfidy means? I have a feeling you do but you should look up the word in the dictionary to be sure.” Other words that concerned me were: portentous, divine comeuppance, gor, and atonement. Many words like these are scattered throughout the book making it difficult for children with reading difficulties. That is why I do appreciate the book being available in audio for those children who would love to read the story but would not be able to finish such a daunting book as this.
Throughout the book there are themes such as love, light, darkness, hope, and forgiveness. Each theme allows for great book discussions. I particularly enjoyed, “Every action listener, no matter how small, has a consequence.” And “Forgiveness listener, is, I think something very much like hope and love, a powerful thing.”
This story was powerful indeed. It will shed light on darkness and allow love, hope, and forgiveness to offer you the power to live.
4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Newbery Medal Award
A Junior Library Guild Selection
Booklist: Forgiveness, light, love, and soup. These essential ingredients combine into a tale that is as soul stirring as it is delicious.
Horn Book: Di Camillo tells an engaging tale.
School Library Journal: A charming story of unlikely heroes whose destinies entwine to bring about a joyful resolution.
5. CONNECTIONS
*Have students conduct a brown bag book report using choice items to retell the story to the class.
*Discuss the differences between light and darkness. How do they affect our lives?
*Discuss the act of forgiveness. Besides Despereaux, who else in the book had to face the issue of forgiveness and how did it change them?
Other books by Kate DiCamillo:
DiCamillo, Kate. The Tiger Rising. ISBN: 0763618985
DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn- Dixie. ISBN: 0763616052
DiCamillo, Kate. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. ISBN: 0763639877
DiCamillo, Kate, and Graeme Malcolm. 2005. The Tale of Despereaux. Unabridged Audio. New York, NY: Random House Listening Library. ISBN: 1400099137
2. PLOT SUMMARY
Despereaux, an unlikely hero, is betrayed by his brother and father and sent to die in the rat filled dungeon. In this dark stench dungeon, he sets out on a quest to save the Princess Pea. She has been taken captive by a rat, Roscuro, and a servant girl, Miggery Sow who desire to fulfill divine comeuppance. Despereaux sets out to do the impossible; he faces the grave dangers of the dungeon to rescue his fair lady with a spool of red thread, a needle, and love.
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS
Kate DiCamillo has written a fantasy Newbery Medal book the mixes together ingredients that will stir your soul. She was able to spin this tale in a way that you forget that the hero or protagonist, is a mouse. The book is divided into four books each book elaborating on a character and settings to spin the tale and weave it together. The first book is about Despereaux, how unthinkably different and disappointing he is to his family and what love does to his heart. Book two introduces us to Chiaroscuro or Roscuro the rat. Roscuro has been groomed for dismay, darkness, and torturous gloom but when a spark of light enters his soul he is forever changed. Book three is the tale of Miggery Sow. This poor girl, named after her father’s prized pig, is traded into slavery by her father for a handful of cigarettes, a red tablecloth, and a hen. Her greatest desire is to become a princess although what Miggery Sow wanted was of no concern to anyone. Book four wraps up each story. Princess Pea’s character was intertwined in each book and now the ultimate solution to each characters problem is solved to a degree together.
Illustrator, Timothy Basil Ering has sketched pencil drawings of the characters throughout the book. Each illustration offers a glimpse into the lives and personalities of the characters. The pictures capture moments in the book that add to the drama of the story and allows the reader to picture and envision the characters which I enjoyed and appreciated.
The narrator, Graeme Malcolm, has an eloquent dialect to his voice. The sound quality is superb. The audio book uses music that adds drama at the beginning and end of the story. Malcolm uses distinct voice to reflect each character. I especially enjoyed the French accent he used for Despereaux’s mother Antoinette. The narration is over three hours long and placed on three CD’s. I appreciated the story being available in audio book format. This is due to the difficult dialect and language used. The language is somewhat hard to read and even to listen to at times. The narrator asks questions like, “Listener do you know what the word perfidy means? I have a feeling you do but you should look up the word in the dictionary to be sure.” Other words that concerned me were: portentous, divine comeuppance, gor, and atonement. Many words like these are scattered throughout the book making it difficult for children with reading difficulties. That is why I do appreciate the book being available in audio for those children who would love to read the story but would not be able to finish such a daunting book as this.
Throughout the book there are themes such as love, light, darkness, hope, and forgiveness. Each theme allows for great book discussions. I particularly enjoyed, “Every action listener, no matter how small, has a consequence.” And “Forgiveness listener, is, I think something very much like hope and love, a powerful thing.”
This story was powerful indeed. It will shed light on darkness and allow love, hope, and forgiveness to offer you the power to live.
4. REVIEW EXCERPTS
Newbery Medal Award
A Junior Library Guild Selection
Booklist: Forgiveness, light, love, and soup. These essential ingredients combine into a tale that is as soul stirring as it is delicious.
Horn Book: Di Camillo tells an engaging tale.
School Library Journal: A charming story of unlikely heroes whose destinies entwine to bring about a joyful resolution.
5. CONNECTIONS
*Have students conduct a brown bag book report using choice items to retell the story to the class.
*Discuss the differences between light and darkness. How do they affect our lives?
*Discuss the act of forgiveness. Besides Despereaux, who else in the book had to face the issue of forgiveness and how did it change them?
Other books by Kate DiCamillo:
DiCamillo, Kate. The Tiger Rising. ISBN: 0763618985
DiCamillo, Kate. Because of Winn- Dixie. ISBN: 0763616052
DiCamillo, Kate. The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane. ISBN: 0763639877
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