Despereaux/the Tale Of Despereaux
by Kate DiCamillo
|
|
| published
|
October 30th 2004
by Lectorum Publications
|
| first published
| 2003 |
| binding
| Hardcover |
| isbn
|
8427950047
(isbn13: 9788427950047)
|
| literary awards
| Newbery Medal |
| date added
|
01-15-07
|
|
Sign in to Goodreads to see your friends' reviews of Despereaux/the Tale Of Despereaux.
discuss this book
| topics |
replies |
last activity |
| lets tALK |
5 |
03/09/2008 06:56PM |
groups with this book
Indonesia
1026 members
last activity: 6 hours, 46 min ago
location: 40143, Indonesia
True North
60 members
last activity: 1 minute ago
location: Huntington Beach, CA
Chippewa Chargers
46 members
last activity: 05/29/2008 04:33PM
location: Saint Paul, MN
friend reviews (0)
To see what your friends thought of this book,
please sign up.
other reviews
(showing 1-20 of 4607)
Read in January, 2006
recommends it for:
EVERYONE!!
I picked this book up on a whim in the Barnes & Noble because I liked the look of the cover and the jagged edges of the paper that gave it a "classic" feel. I was looking for a new bedtime book to read to my children - 2 and 6 at the time. We like to read a bigger book, one chapter each night - for bedtime stories. I read the description and thought it sounded like a good idea so I went ahead and bought it (which is REALLY unusual for me - I can be a cheapskate!) It is by far so...more
I picked this book up on a whim in the Barnes & Noble because I liked the look of the cover and the jagged edges of the paper that gave it a "classic" feel. I was looking for a new bedtime book to read to my children - 2 and 6 at the time. We like to read a bigger book, one chapter each night - for bedtime stories. I read the description and thought it sounded like a good idea so I went ahead and bought it (which is REALLY unusual for me - I can be a cheapskate!) It is by far some of the best money I have ever spent. The book is really that good. While technically a children's story, I could have read this as an adult before I had kids and loved the book just as much - it is a story that is so beautiful, classic and timeless. The thing I think I love the most about her writing style is that she does NOT dumb anything down. Not the language, characters, plot, theme or anything. The style is like a story teller telling you the story, with some asides and speaking to the reader. Which added so much to the story. The book is paced perfectly (there were many nights we all wanted to just keep reading and reading!), and the chapters are perfect breaking points (I would not be surprised at all to find out that she purposefully chose the chapter breaks with nightly reading in mind - there is a wonder cliff hanger feel to each chapter ending. Every night my son would look at me with big eyes and say - I wonder what is going to happen next??!!) The themes are very complex, but everything is understandable even to young children (my 2 year old daughter was able to follow along without too much difficulty - but with a lot of word definitions!) I liked that it dealt with such big themes like duty and love and heartache and redemption and the reality of the world around you. (ie certain characters are not evil but mean, sometimes people do stupid things that you can't fix, etc.) I could go on all day about things that I loved and scenes that were so wonderful i can still see them in my head. We have read this as a family for bedtime stories 3 times now!! And given the chapter a night pace and the size of the book, that is no small feat! This is a book that I will save and give to my grandchildren. I can't recommend it enough!!
Also check out The Journey of Edward Tulane - we loved Despereaux more, but it is a very close call. That book is very similar and also wonderful. ...less
bookshelves:
7up,
momoo
Read in June, 2008
A perfect combination of sweet and dark. Or light and dark, would be a more fitting description, I suppose. And by that I don't just mean that there were good deeds and bad deeds, right and wrong and everyone learned a lesson. Everyone didn't learn a lesson and some people/rats/mice were bad, cowardly, or just plain stupid. This is nothing like Roald Dahl, but they share a quality that I very much appreciate, particularly in children's lit: they let you dislike the unlikeable. Everyone is not ni...more
A perfect combination of sweet and dark. Or light and dark, would be a more fitting description, I suppose. And by that I don't just mean that there were good deeds and bad deeds, right and wrong and everyone learned a lesson. Everyone didn't learn a lesson and some people/rats/mice were bad, cowardly, or just plain stupid. This is nothing like Roald Dahl, but they share a quality that I very much appreciate, particularly in children's lit: they let you dislike the unlikeable. Everyone is not nice or good, but some people (or mice) are exceptionally good and honorable. And Dicamillo, of course, never shies away from the sad. She may like death and disappoint a lot, but, I for one am glad it's out there for kids to read. I think parents (or the ones that shop here, anyway), sometimes want to (over)protect and forget that we learn just as much, if not more, from a book with both ends of the spectrum. "Everything, as you well know (having lived in this world long enough to have figured out a thing or two for yourself), cannot always be sweetness and light." (pg 183)
I really like the narrator. I like the questions she asks, I ("Reader, do you think that it is a terrible thing to hope when there is really no reason to hope at all? Or is it (as the soldier said about happiness) something that you might just as well do, since, in the end, it really makes no difference to anyone but you?"), I like that she forces a dictionary on you ("Reader, do you know what the word 'perfidy' means? I have a feeling you do, based on the little scene that just unfolded here. But you should look up the word in your dictionary, just to be sure."), and I really love it when she encourages you to say the word "quest" out loud. Fantastic and completely engaging....less
bookshelves:
fantasy,
middle-readers,
newbery-winner
Read in January, 2008
Kate DiCamillo, author of the Newbery Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie, spins a tidy tale of mice and men where she explores the "powerful, wonderful, and ridiculous" nature of love, hope, and forgiveness. Her old-fashioned, somewhat dark story, narrated "Dear Reader"-style, begins "within the walls of a castle, with the birth of a mouse." Despereaux Tilling, the new baby mouse, is different from all other mice. Sadly, the romantic, unmouselike spirit that leads the...more
Kate DiCamillo, author of the Newbery Honor book Because of Winn-Dixie, spins a tidy tale of mice and men where she explores the "powerful, wonderful, and ridiculous" nature of love, hope, and forgiveness. Her old-fashioned, somewhat dark story, narrated "Dear Reader"-style, begins "within the walls of a castle, with the birth of a mouse." Despereaux Tilling, the new baby mouse, is different from all other mice. Sadly, the romantic, unmouselike spirit that leads the unusually tiny, large-eared mouse to the foot of the human king and the beautiful Princess Pea ultimately causes him to be banished by his own father to the foul, rat-filled dungeon.
The first book of four tells Despereaux's sad story, where he falls deeply in love with Princess Pea and meets his cruel fate. The second book introduces another creature who differs from his peers--Chiaroscuro, a rat who instead of loving the darkness of his home in the dungeon, loves the light so much he ends up in the castle& in the queen's soup. The third book describes young Miggery Sow, a girl who has been "clouted" so many times that she has cauliflower ears. Still, all the slow-witted, hard-of-hearing Mig dreams of is wearing the crown of Princess Pea. The fourth book returns to the dungeon-bound Despereaux and connects the lives of mouse, rat, girl, and princess in a dramatic denouement.
Children whose hopes and dreams burn secretly within their hearts will relate to this cast of outsiders who desire what is said to be out of their reach and dare to break "never-to-be-broken rules of conduct." Timothy Basil Ering's pencil illustrations are stunning, reflecting DiCamillo's extensive light and darkness imagery as well as the sweet, fragile nature of the tiny mouse hero who lives happily ever after. (Ages 9 and older)...less
Read in March, 2008
OK, so now that I've thought about what I really think about this book, I'm changing my rating from 3 stars to 2 stars. There was more that I didn't like than I liked. After hearing a lot good reports about this book, I think I was expecting something different. I liked the idea of the light versus dark. I liked the unlikely friendship between the mouse and the princess. I liked the forgiveness. And I liked that it ended up "happily ever after", for the most part.
I started out rea...more
OK, so now that I've thought about what I really think about this book, I'm changing my rating from 3 stars to 2 stars. There was more that I didn't like than I liked. After hearing a lot good reports about this book, I think I was expecting something different. I liked the idea of the light versus dark. I liked the unlikely friendship between the mouse and the princess. I liked the forgiveness. And I liked that it ended up "happily ever after", for the most part.
I started out reading this book aloud to my boys, but I stopped reading to them after the first rat chapter and finished the book myself, then gave them the condensed version, picking up with the actual reading at the very end of the book. They were disturbed (and so was I) by the unfeeling evil of the rats. I felt even worse about the constant ear boxing and degredation of Miggery Sow.
I didn't go for another princess story without a mom. Just like all the Disney movies - Mom is deceased and Dad is oblivious. And what about the mouse family? Yikes!
I didn't like that the darkness in the story seemed to outweigh the light. The rat and Miggery Sow chapters were simply unpleasant. The lack of positive family feelings was sad. And what is this about Miggery Sow and a big kitchen knife? Hmm.
I guess I was anticipating more light. More love. More happy family feelings. I realize that the negative was essential to make the contrast between light and dark, but for me, there was just too much dark and not enough light. Especially for a prize winning book geared for young people....less
Read in April, 2008
today is the first day i got this book.i am on page 45.
i like reading this book because it talks about a mouse and how he starts to wonder around a castle he lived in with hes sister and brothers .on chapter one it talkes about a mouse who was born whos name was despereux the reason hes name is that is because his mom had some babbeys and evry time she had them they had died expects this one so the reason why she named him that is because she said she fells depressd and she thougth that the ba...more
today is the first day i got this book.i am on page 45.
i like reading this book because it talks about a mouse and how he starts to wonder around a castle he lived in with hes sister and brothers .on chapter one it talkes about a mouse who was born whos name was despereux the reason hes name is that is because his mom had some babbeys and evry time she had them they had died expects this one so the reason why she named him that is because she said she fells depressd and she thougth that the babey despereux was going to die but he did not
in the next chapeter the mouse falls in love
apirl 30,th
today in chapter 3the chaperter is about one a upon atime
the reason that is beause today while in the castle desperouex and one of hes sister went togo and teach deper- how to eat papper and also eat glue. but when they went depur- sayed no he dosnt want to eat paper and glue he said the reason why is because he looked at a book and sayed no he will never eat a book he will like to read it and the first words he sayed from the boo were once a pon a time and he went on and on reading
that was what happend in the 3rd chapter
may,1th
well reading chapter 4 i came past a part in the chapter that talked about love betwwen a mice and a princess named pea
how the mouse felled in love is my qestion but int he story he loved her and music that was on hes mind that is what i did not get...less
recommended to Tori by:
My teacher
recommends it for:
2nd-4th grade-ish
I read this a looooong time ago, way back in 3rd grade, almost 4 years ago, recommended to me by my teacher, and I found it quite enjoyable. Let's see how much I remember... correct me if I get anything wrong.
A cute fairy tale about a mouse that falls in love with a princess, and then is rejected by his fellow mice, banished to the dungeon. There he meets a rat, Rosco or something like that, a rat that wants to see the light, the complete opposite of his rat friends, and I forget what happen...more
I read this a looooong time ago, way back in 3rd grade, almost 4 years ago, recommended to me by my teacher, and I found it quite enjoyable. Let's see how much I remember... correct me if I get anything wrong.
A cute fairy tale about a mouse that falls in love with a princess, and then is rejected by his fellow mice, banished to the dungeon. There he meets a rat, Rosco or something like that, a rat that wants to see the light, the complete opposite of his rat friends, and I forget what happens after that. I know they meet the father of the princess wannabe Miggery Sow, and had sold his daughter for a chicken, I know, and a red tablecloth or something like that. =S I also remember a dungeon keeper, with string or something so he wouldn't get lost in the dungeons, or maybe that was the rats, but that's about all I remember.
In 5th grade one of the Language Arts classes in my grade was reading this book as a group. Most of them didn't like it, so beware, it my not be as enchanting as when you're younger, or maybe that was just them, but that's why I was afraid to reread it and then review.
I definitely recommend it to anywhere from 6 to 9, I'm planning to read it to my 5 year old sister and see if she gets it, but all in all, an adorable book that, although 300 pages, is a very quick read. The chapters are extremely short and the print is quite large, but no matter....less
bookshelves:
children-s
Read in July, 2008
recommended to Jenny by:
The trailer for the upcoming movie when we watched Wall-e in the
This was an interesting book. It was a new style and storytelling perspective than I am used to, which at times I wondered if I liked, but overall I am glad I read it and think the author did a good job writing a cute story with interesting characters and storyline. I liked the different books about the various characters and seeing how they weaved together (predictable at times, which at least helped me feel like I was up with things! Sometimes I'm a little slow I think! :) )
I think I like...more
This was an interesting book. It was a new style and storytelling perspective than I am used to, which at times I wondered if I liked, but overall I am glad I read it and think the author did a good job writing a cute story with interesting characters and storyline. I liked the different books about the various characters and seeing how they weaved together (predictable at times, which at least helped me feel like I was up with things! Sometimes I'm a little slow I think! :) )
I think I liked it more than my husband did though; he was expecting more adventure and heroism from it, I think. I don't know if this is what she was going for (it's a shock I ever passed AP English...or the test for that matter...) but I really saw the whole book as a metaphor about light/dark, good/evil. To me this book was about relationships and making good choices despite difficult circumstances. I liked the simple, short chapters because it kept me interested and I did not have to think much or delve in to something I couldn't set down and pick up at a later time (Hey, I have 2 children, of course I wasn't quite able to give undivided attention to it and finish it in one sitting!). I liked the metaphors for life that the author pointed out; I really think that was what she was going for. The characters and story were just a method for her to teach her lessons, I believe. ...less
bookshelves:
children-and-ya
Read in September, 2003
recommends it for:
anybody
I liked this book much better than Because of Winn-Dixie. This fairy-tale adventure about a mouse, a rat, a princess, and a servant girl is told in a measured, mannered voice that's a departure for DiCamillo's usual casual style. There are frequent appeals to the "dear reader," which work for me as they do in so few other books.
Despereaux is the youngest mouse in his family. He is runty, with huge ears, and prefers reading books to eating them. We're given glimpses of his fa...more
I liked this book much better than Because of Winn-Dixie. This fairy-tale adventure about a mouse, a rat, a princess, and a servant girl is told in a measured, mannered voice that's a departure for DiCamillo's usual casual style. There are frequent appeals to the "dear reader," which work for me as they do in so few other books.
Despereaux is the youngest mouse in his family. He is runty, with huge ears, and prefers reading books to eating them. We're given glimpses of his family -- his faithless father, his very proper sister, his loutish brother whose favorite word is "Cripes!," and his French mother, whose English is slightly stiff and very amusing. Before long, Despereaux's non-mousely behavior gets him banished to the dungeon, where the castle rats will presumably eat him.
He escapes, of course, only to cross paths with a vengeful rat who has taken a slow-witted palace maid into service, to help him carry out his plan to punish Princess Pea, the object of his hatred and Despereaux's devotion.
Forgiveness, second chances, embracing the light, being who you are, the importance of stories, and the restorative properties of a hot bowl of soup all come into play to create a delicate, magical book that I suspect may have more longevity than the celebrated but ultimately somewhat ordinary Because of Winn-Dixie. ...less
bookshelves:
childrens-books
Read in February, 2008
I'll give props to fellow Minnesotan Kate DiCamillo for this book: the characters are interesting and have a lot of depth, and the story is both sweet and equally disturbing at times, proof of DiCamillo's ability to weave quite a tale.
I did not, however, understand the purpose of the two-page chapters. The book is beautifully and maturely written in a way that envelopes the reader, but breaking up the text in such short chapters quickly became annoying. I found myself not even bothering to...more
I'll give props to fellow Minnesotan Kate DiCamillo for this book: the characters are interesting and have a lot of depth, and the story is both sweet and equally disturbing at times, proof of DiCamillo's ability to weave quite a tale.
I did not, however, understand the purpose of the two-page chapters. The book is beautifully and maturely written in a way that envelopes the reader, but breaking up the text in such short chapters quickly became annoying. I found myself not even bothering to read the chapter titles so as not to disrupt my pace.
The dark, disturbing parts were also rather jarring; they were so stark in comparison to the cute parts that they felt almost out-of-place. Sure, classic fairy tales have plenty of murder, dark plots, and child abuse in them, too, but for some reason I couldn't appreciate DiCamillo's dark side in the same way. I'd love to see DiCamillo take on a completely dark tale for older audiences where she'd take no prisoners.
In no way does this book deter me from the rest of DiCamillo's children's books, though. I plan on reading them all. There is probably a good reason she's won the Newbury Award, and I just haven't personally seen it yet.
...less
Read in April, 2007
Confession: I finished this book in one day. Why could I read so quickly? Definitely not because of my speed-reading capabilities! It’s because, despite being nearly 300 pages, it is short. :-)
I wouldn’t say it’s a truly compelling read (though it did win the Newbery Award), but it held my attention even if it truly was a book written for children. I read a lot of children’s and young adult books, but plenty of them are meaty enough that I don’t feel sheepish saying I've read the...more
Confession: I finished this book in one day. Why could I read so quickly? Definitely not because of my speed-reading capabilities! It’s because, despite being nearly 300 pages, it is short. :-)
I wouldn’t say it’s a truly compelling read (though it did win the Newbery Award), but it held my attention even if it truly was a book written for children. I read a lot of children’s and young adult books, but plenty of them are meaty enough that I don’t feel sheepish saying I've read them. This one … well. It’s got that Lemony Snicketness about it, where the author is talking to you and addressing you as “Reader” and encouraging you to look up words (I did look up “perfidy” and learned the meaning of it), and consequently I fly through the fourteen-point font and double-spaced, illustrated pages and then chalk it up to another book read.
Hey, at least I’ve stopped reading Baby-Sitters Club. (Also: Ann M. Martin stopped writing them. Ha!)
If you’re looking for a light way to pass the afternoon or bored in the library, this book is worth looking at, if only for the interesting storytelling technique and the imaginative plot. ...less
bookshelves:
nathan-s-books
Read in July, 2008
One of my favorite poems is called "Snow Aldo" by Kate DiCamillo (1).
I saw this book in my son's monthly Scholastic book order and noticed it was by the same author as "Because of Winn Dixie"(2). Haven't read the book, but enjoyed the movie (and the soundtrack even more).
While driving my son and his friend home one evening I asked my son's friend what his favorite book was and he said "Despereaux" (3). I thought I've heard about that, and asked him to te...more
One of my favorite poems is called "Snow Aldo" by Kate DiCamillo (1).
I saw this book in my son's monthly Scholastic book order and noticed it was by the same author as "Because of Winn Dixie"(2). Haven't read the book, but enjoyed the movie (and the soundtrack even more).
While driving my son and his friend home one evening I asked my son's friend what his favorite book was and he said "Despereaux" (3). I thought I've heard about that, and asked him to tell me why he liked it. He told me and my son all about the story of this little mouse with huge ears that doesn't fit into his mouse society because he's different and not afraid of the things he's supposed to be afraid of.
As I was re-reading my favorite poem, "Snow Aldo", again, it dawned on me that it was written by Kate DeCamillo (4). With 4 connections I was off to the book store to pick up the book.
My son is currently reading, and enjoying, the book and I will likely read it next. I like how the author asked the reader if they know what a specific word means. If they don't she asks them to try to figure it out by looking at how it's used in the sentence. If that doesn't work, she recommends that they look it up in the dictionary. ...less
bookshelves:
tweens
Read in February, 2007
Despereaux is a mouse who doesn’t act like a mouse. He likes to read, he likes music, and he falls in love with the princess. For this crime, he is sent to the dungeons to be killed by the rats. Roscuro is a rat who doesn’t act like a rat; he wants only to see the light, not torture prisoners in the dark dungeon. Through a twist of fate Despereaux and Roscuro find themselves pitted against one another, and Despereaux is given the opportunity to save his beloved princess.
DiCamillo’s...more
Despereaux is a mouse who doesn’t act like a mouse. He likes to read, he likes music, and he falls in love with the princess. For this crime, he is sent to the dungeons to be killed by the rats. Roscuro is a rat who doesn’t act like a rat; he wants only to see the light, not torture prisoners in the dark dungeon. Through a twist of fate Despereaux and Roscuro find themselves pitted against one another, and Despereaux is given the opportunity to save his beloved princess.
DiCamillo’s writing style is very cute and engaging; she is constantly interrupting her story to speak to the reader. It makes for a very casual and engaging experience. The ragged ends of the pages are a fun, deliberate touch, as we learn early on that mice enjoy nibbled books. She tells the story in four parts, the first three setting up the seemingly-independent storylines for our main characters and the last tying them all together at the end. It works as an incentive for the reader to find out how all the characters connect. The fairy-tale aspect of the story, and the mouse protagonist, will appeal to younger elementary school readers, but the length may discourage more reluctant readers.
...less
Read in September, 2007
A talking mouse falls in love with a beautiful princess, and, armed with only a needle, vows to rescue her from the clutches of an evil rat and a dull servant-girl. Admittedly, it sounds a bit (okay, very) trite. That was my mindset too, even after the librarian had gushed on and on about what a wonderful book it was (did she think I was going to read some LITTLE KIDS' fairytale?).
But two years ago, I was waiting backstage during a piano concert, bored out of my mind, when I found The Tale o...more
A talking mouse falls in love with a beautiful princess, and, armed with only a needle, vows to rescue her from the clutches of an evil rat and a dull servant-girl. Admittedly, it sounds a bit (okay, very) trite. That was my mindset too, even after the librarian had gushed on and on about what a wonderful book it was (did she think I was going to read some LITTLE KIDS' fairytale?).
But two years ago, I was waiting backstage during a piano concert, bored out of my mind, when I found The Tale of Despereaux lying on a table. What I was thinking as I picked it up was something like "Well, it's better than nothing." What I actually found was one of the most beautiful stories I have ever read. A simple, heart-breaking tale of love, soup, light, and impossible hopes and dreams. So, you see, don't judge a book by its cover (or in this case, its summary). Who knows what you might miss?...less
Read in January, 2006
recommends it for:
people who appreciate overwrought children's books.
Some children's books are wonderfully odd. Others are just odd.
The story of Desperaux (a mouse who doesn't just want to be a mouse) is told through the eyes of several different characters. As the stories weave in an out of each other, they draw closer together until the predictably improbably ending.
Unfortunately, the characters in the world of Desperaux are all two dimensional; we are repeatedly told how bad the bad guys/rats are, and how good the good guys/mice are, and how clum...more
Some children's books are wonderfully odd. Others are just odd.
The story of Desperaux (a mouse who doesn't just want to be a mouse) is told through the eyes of several different characters. As the stories weave in an out of each other, they draw closer together until the predictably improbably ending.
Unfortunately, the characters in the world of Desperaux are all two dimensional; we are repeatedly told how bad the bad guys/rats are, and how good the good guys/mice are, and how clumsy a clumsy character is, and so on. The story weaves through adventure and emotion, without ever really connecting the two together. At times, the writing strains uncomfortably, as if the author was trying to hit a home run, but had to settle for a double. As if by sheer effort, she could make this book into a "classic", without first earning the affection of the readers.
Skip it, I say.
(Updated to add: The day I wrote this review, I come home to find that Becca (9 year old daughter) has checked out this book from her school library. So she liked it enough to read it again, and she's really enjoying it for the second time.)...less
bookshelves:
2007,
children,
newbery
Read in February, 2007
The set up of the three main characters is fun to watch and the intereaction between the various characters is both touching and amusing. Unfortunately, I felt like the climax was a bit weak and rushed. With such a deliberate and careful set up, it was slightly upsetting to see the whole thing suddenly lumped together and then concluded, in my mind, rather clumsily. Still, few books can get everything right, and the enjoyment of the rest of the book greatly offsets any disappointment found in th...more
The set up of the three main characters is fun to watch and the intereaction between the various characters is both touching and amusing. Unfortunately, I felt like the climax was a bit weak and rushed. With such a deliberate and careful set up, it was slightly upsetting to see the whole thing suddenly lumped together and then concluded, in my mind, rather clumsily. Still, few books can get everything right, and the enjoyment of the rest of the book greatly offsets any disappointment found in the last twenty pages.
The writing style reminded me slightly of Lemony Snickett, with the habit of addressing the reader directly (and some amusing definitions of various words) and that instantly endeared me to the writer, since the Lemony Snickett series entertain me to no end. Some of the lines appealed to me no end, particularly this one: "Reader, you must know that an interesting fate (sometimes involving rats, sometimes not) awaits almost everyone, mouse or man, who does not conform."
Read the rest of my review at http://everydayreading.blogspo......less
Read in May, 2007
The Tale of Despereaux tells the story of a small mouse with large ears - an unlikely hero. Despereaux falls in love with the princess in the castle; upon seeing Princess Pea for the first time, he knows it is his destiny to be with her. Unfortunately, his fellow mice do not agree, and banish him to the dungeon.
Other characters are tied in - Roscuro, a rat who wants to be in the light (unlike the others); Miggery Sow, a dimwitted girl whose father traded her for a chicken and a tabl...more
The Tale of Despereaux tells the story of a small mouse with large ears - an unlikely hero. Despereaux falls in love with the princess in the castle; upon seeing Princess Pea for the first time, he knows it is his destiny to be with her. Unfortunately, his fellow mice do not agree, and banish him to the dungeon.
Other characters are tied in - Roscuro, a rat who wants to be in the light (unlike the others); Miggery Sow, a dimwitted girl whose father traded her for a chicken and a tablecloth; and the jailer who tries to help Despereaux get back upstairs from the dungeon.
Despereaux does get back, only to find out that his beloved Princess Pea has been kidnapped, taken down to the dungeon. As mice never return from the dungeon in the first place, can Despereaux find the courage to go back down and rescue the princess?
This story, which won the Newbery Medal, was intricately woven by DiCamillo. The illustrations bring the story to life, in an old-fashioned fairy tale sort of way. Readers will cheer for Despereaux as he fights against all odds to win back his princess....less
bookshelves:
young-adult
I just picked this book off the shelf at the library one day and decided to read it with my kids. I know this won a Newberry Medal and all, but my kids hated it. They kept saying things like, "This is so depressing!" "I hope this gets better in the end." "Why is everyone so mean?" Against my better judgement, I continued reading to them! I kept thinking that it would redeem itself by the end (as my children hoped), but it didn't--at least in our humble opinions. I g...more
I just picked this book off the shelf at the library one day and decided to read it with my kids. I know this won a Newberry Medal and all, but my kids hated it. They kept saying things like, "This is so depressing!" "I hope this gets better in the end." "Why is everyone so mean?" Against my better judgement, I continued reading to them! I kept thinking that it would redeem itself by the end (as my children hoped), but it didn't--at least in our humble opinions. I guess it ended slightly happier than the rest of the book, but I wouldn't call that redeeming.
We were deeply disturbed by the abuse to Miggery Sow. My kids couldn't imagine someone getting "boxed in the ears" every day of their life to the point that it caused hearing damage. My oldest child asked me if it was true that someone could lose their hearing if they got hit enough. Of course, I told him the truth and said it could happen. He was terribly sad about that.
It's not the kind of book I enjoy reading, and definitely not the kind of book I enjoy reading to my children!
...less
This is a cute story, very descriptive and well-written, but the overall plot was pretty weird to me. I have been very torn over whether or not I actually liked the book. There were many things that I liked --- the way that the author made the readers a more personal part of the storytelling by speaking directly to them as readers, the interesting descriptiveness, and the chiaroscuro (and the name of the rat that further embodies the contrast between light and dark). I just didn't like the fa...more
This is a cute story, very descriptive and well-written, but the overall plot was pretty weird to me. I have been very torn over whether or not I actually liked the book. There were many things that I liked --- the way that the author made the readers a more personal part of the storytelling by speaking directly to them as readers, the interesting descriptiveness, and the chiaroscuro (and the name of the rat that further embodies the contrast between light and dark). I just didn't like the fact that a tiny mouse was literally falling in love with a human girl. I might have missed it, but the book didn't seem to really define the relationship of the different creatures in the story. Were the mice and rats vermin, or were they merely other creatures living in the same vicinity on a smaller scale? If they were civilized creatures, then why were they sometimes treated like vermin (like when they were in the kitchen)? I guess the relationships between the different species confused me....less
Read in December, 2007
Light and charming. DiCamillo deals with the topics of hope, light, despair, and darkness in a straightforward, uplifting way. In a tale of unlikely heroes, Despereaux is a mouse with a mission to rescue the human princess he loves from the darkness of the dungeon and rats. In the telling of the tale, DiCamillo shows how people (and rodents, I suppose) are shaped by their decisions and the decisions of others around them. Ultimately, we how each can change the course of their lives and gain f...more
Light and charming. DiCamillo deals with the topics of hope, light, despair, and darkness in a straightforward, uplifting way. In a tale of unlikely heroes, Despereaux is a mouse with a mission to rescue the human princess he loves from the darkness of the dungeon and rats. In the telling of the tale, DiCamillo shows how people (and rodents, I suppose) are shaped by their decisions and the decisions of others around them. Ultimately, we how each can change the course of their lives and gain forgiveness. It's told in a very gentle, simple way.
I've read it twice within the past few months. I was actually surprised how much I liked it after my first reading. So I read it again just to make sure. What made me a bit uncertain is the narrator's dominant role in the flow of the story. At first, it felt a bit condescending; however, as I continued to read, I fell under DiCamillo's spell and came away touched and grateful for what I'd just experienced....less
bookshelves:
crap-that-actually-got-published
recommended to Mister Jones by:
actually I got a free copy at a book fair
recommends it for:
Satan's children
I was dumbfounded about this one; I thought DiCamillo's Because of Winn Dixie was a touching read and its characters sensitively portrayed, but this work is a completely different matter:
A sadistic rat who delights in suffering, and encourages suffering, a poor dumb gal who has been physically abused so much she has cauliflower ears, and a mouse who is degraded and berated for being different by his own family and sent to a dark dungeon. The whole thing's undermined by some dark, grim...more
I was dumbfounded about this one; I thought DiCamillo's Because of Winn Dixie was a touching read and its characters sensitively portrayed, but this work is a completely different matter:
A sadistic rat who delights in suffering, and encourages suffering, a poor dumb gal who has been physically abused so much she has cauliflower ears, and a mouse who is degraded and berated for being different by his own family and sent to a dark dungeon. The whole thing's undermined by some dark, grim depressing--and in some places, nihilistic--tone. It's not a happy read.
And I won't even mention the poor hackneyed narration, "dear reader."
I failed to understand why this is considered childrens literature. Maybe for pre-psychopathic early adolescents.
I failed to understand why it was awarded a Newberry medal.
Would I read this to my own children? HELL NO.
Curious George, where are you when we need you?...less
book data (includes all editions)
avg rating
(all editions):
4.12 (4114 ratings)
avg rating
(this edition): 4.23
(64 ratings)
number of reviews: 840
other editions
[close]
The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup and a Spool of Thread (Paperback)
isbn: 0763625299
[close]
The Tale of Despereaux (Hardcover)
isbn: 0439692202
[close]
The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread (Newbery Medal Book)
isbn: 0763617229
