Wow, what a nearly perfect kids story this was. It has adventure, fairy tale locations, fearful things in dark places, a beautiful princess, anthropomorphic animals, and even some seamlessly-woven morals about love, acceptance and bravery in the face of peer-pressure and societal norms. Even the writing style has a special sense of legend and gravity to it, with the storyteller frequently addressing you as "Reader."

The book weaves together the stories of three characters. 1) Despereaux: a mouse who is more concerned with art, literature and beauty than with things that a typical mouse is "supposed" to be concerned with, and who is cast out of the mouse community for committing the ultimate sin - falling in love with a human princess. 2) Roscuro: a rat who, like Despereaux, had an affinity for light and beauty (unlike the other rats who prefer darkness and the suffering of others) but who's heart was broken and mended crooked. He seeks out revenge on the very same princess that Despereaux has fallen in love with. 3) Miggery Sow: an ugly stupid girl with worse than a lousy lot in life, who wants, more than anything, more than reality will allow, to be a princess... a desire that the crooked Roscuro takes advantage of to exact his revenge.

What follows is a tale that you can't help but be swept up in as you root for, weep for and empathize for each and every character. "Good" characters have their flaws. "Bad" characters are given chances at redemption. And the results are simultaneously heartbreaking and inspiring.

The story does have its flaws, notably the ending, which in my opinion was tied up and concluded far too fast for my liking, with the author committing that cardinal sin of storytelling: "telling" rather than "showing". Which is a shame because some of the revelations that come out at the end had the potential to draw tears and create goosebumps had she delved into them for even a few paragraphs. Instead, she sums them up with a couple of practically throwaway sentences, leaving the reader yearning for more.

But that's really my only gripe. On all other accounts, this was by far my absolute favorite book that I have read out loud with my daughter. I found that *I* was actually the one getting excited to read the next few chapters each and every night to see what happened. Whether you're reading it with a child or just by yourself, I feel pretty confident that you'll enjoy it.