Despereaux
Despereaux , by Kate DeCamillo is a 2004 Newbery Award winner and is recommended for ages 9-12. First of all let me say that I loved this book! The book is about a mouse who is born into this world “with his eyes open”. He is smaller than all of the other mice and he has really big ears. He is different in other was as well, he likes to read, and loves the light and music. His being different eventually winds him up in the dungeon where he meets the other two main characters of the book a servant girl named Meg and a rat named Roscuro. All three have things that they are trying to obtain, Despereaux has fallen in love with a human princess, Princess Pea and wants to be with her, Mig longs desperately to become a princess and Roscuro is tired of being in the dark and craves to live in the light. All three through twist and turns discovers many things about each other as well as themselves. An interesting part of the story was the involvement of the narrator. The narrator all through the book adds humor and insight to situations. DeCamillo, also intertwines moral lessons and examples of real life experiences in her book that brings it to a higher level of comprehension. It is a book that can be enjoyed by all ages.