THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread
by Kate DiCamillo; illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering
Candlewick Press
ISBN: 0763625299
Ages 7-12
272 pages

• Read an Excerpt

Despereaux Tilling is a mouse who was born in a castle on an April morning. His parents and siblings look at him in wonder and disappointment. From the moment he was born, Despereaux is unusual. The sickly sole survivor of a large litter, his eyes are open weeks too soon, he has very large ears and an unusually small stature for a mouse. Despereaux seems doomed to have a short existence.

Fortunately, this special mouse lives. He hears sounds that no one else can hear and he's able to read. These two special talents, the reader finds, can be dangerous for a mouse. One day Despereaux stumbles upon King Phillip and his daughter, Princess Pea. The mouse is drawn to the music the king plays for his daughter and soon finds himself talking --- and falling in love --- with the Princess.

Despereaux's brother Furlough watches the scene unfold with growing horror. A mouse talking to a human and allowing themselves to be touched? Such a thing could never be allowed or it could mean the death of the mouse community. Furlough scurries off and tells his father and the mouse council exactly what he saw. It is then that Despereaux's fate is decided.

Meanwhile, a devious rat named Roscuro lives in what is known as the deep downs with his fellow rats and prisoners of the King. What makes Roscuro different from all the other rats is his growing obsession with light and soup.

And Miggery Sow is a poor dimwitted peasant girl who lives in the kingdom with her uncle. Mig does not really have an uncle; she was sold to a man by her father for a tablecloth, a hen and a handful of cigarettes. Why would a father do such a thing to his daughter? The reader may never know. One thing the reader knows for certain is that Mig wants to be a princess.

What will happen to each of these characters, and how are they ultimately connected? The answers await you. THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX is funny and heartwarming. The illustrations are particularly effective, as they bring the book vividly to life. This is undoubtedly a tale that will be told again and again throughout the years.

   --- Reviewed by Sarah Sawtelle (SdarksideG@aol.com)

Click here now to buy this book from Amazon.com.