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Loading... The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup… (original 2003; edition 2006)by Kate Dicamillo, Timothy Basil Ering (Illustrator)
 kaycewilliams | Nov 23, 2008 | 
This was an insanely cute book! (  ) nicdar111 | Jun 19, 2013 | My daughter and I absolutely love this book!!! Each time we read it, I am once again reminded of how powerful stories can be. I think that this is one of those great stories that change us for the better. It is a timeless tale of love, devotion, and tremendous courage. I love the way the author weaves several stories together with the main plot creating a beautiful tapestry that you want to gaze upon carefully trying not to miss any detail. The world is dark, and light is precious. Come closer, dear reader. You must trust me. I am telling you a story, and thus begins the story of a wonderful little unlikely hero with extra large ears through whom happiness and light is restored to the kingdom. (  ) reddslibrary | Jun 18, 2013 | Great one for family car trips. SRH ( ) StaffReads | Jun 11, 2013 | Despereaux is a lonely mouse who is shunned by the mouse community because he likes to read, fantasizes, and talks to the humans. He is a shame to his mother and father, and so he is banished. His curiosity leads to the death of the queen, and he is heartbroken as he is in love with her daughter, the princess Pea. Despereaux embarks on an incredible journey in the dungeon of the castle, where he meets some interesting characters and saves the princess from an awful fate. This book makes a great group read, as the children discuss what is happening and begin to understand how a plot can unfold, and how an author uses foreshadowing to intrigue the reader. (  ) beckytillett | Jun 6, 2013 | A great book, read aloud. Brifost | Jun 4, 2013 | read by a classmate. She appreciated how innocent it was, and how everyone was good in the end. Refreshing for 6-9 year olds who see so much negative in today's society. micsanchez | May 10, 2013 | This is one of my all time favorite books. Despereaux speaks to the small hero in us all. A must read for all elementary students. ( ) MrParks | May 8, 2013 | This is a great book. I love how it is broken down into the four 'chapters' that all take place in different times but it still keeps you connected. The narrators remarks throughout the story are funny and add a great level of interest to the overall story as well as help to keep it all connected. The characters are fun and engaging and I think a lot of people can relate to the feelings of Desperaux and he feels different from the rest of his family. This is a great book for readers of all ages and I would love to use it as part of the curriculum if I was taught English. ( ) RachaelH17 | May 7, 2013 | The thing that I like most about this book is that it's an easy and compelling read that opens up discussion for some serious topics. Furthermore, the entire book carries hope through some dark events. Also, as an interesting spin, even though there appear to be some bad characters, they still have some good characteristics. It makes all of the characters more human (even if they're not actually human). While a tale of fantasy set in a fictional time and place, there are very real connections to our own lives. The serious topics such as selling into servitude, physical and emotional abuse could also be used to discuss these very real topics in our own lives. Students who are often lacking information in this area could be given resources for who to talk to and where to go in real life situations. If a teacher wanted to be really adventurous in the connections to the real world, discussion could be had about human trafficking in our world today. This would be time appropriate as well since last November new legislation was voted into California law regarding human trafficking. ( ) pbailey1980 | May 4, 2013 | Reading The Tale of Despereaux to my children (age nearly 5 and 6) was the best reading experience we have had so far and the first that was a "real" enough book that I'm entering it in my library. The language in the story is beautiful, the plot keeps you moving along--enough that is predictable that you can follow it, but also many surprises and twists. It is a good introduction to nonlinear storytelling, as each of the successive parts begins earlier than the first and then they all converge together. And the characters are all flawed, but ultimately a combination of hope, forgiveness, storytelling and the metaphorical and literal light win out. But not in a complete happily-ever-after way, but in a complex and mixed way. In all of these ways, it is a good antidote to the black-and-white good and evil and the happily ever after of Disney. It taught my children about virtues and faults, while fully entertaining all of us. It looks like most of Kate DiCamillo's other chapter books are a little old for them, but that won't stop me from reading them on my own. ( ) jasonlf | Apr 16, 2013 | Decidedly odd style with frequent asides to the reader. Clunky but sweet story of an unlikely mouse hero. (  ) satyridae | Apr 5, 2013 | Read this book. It is lovely and wonderful and if you don’t read it you will regret it. The tale of an unlikely hero with large ears, a rat who loves light, the Princess Pea, and Miggery Sow. (Jan 2008) ( ) maureene87 | Apr 4, 2013 | Despereaux was born different. He's super-small and his eyes opened right away. And as he grows older, he's decidedly un-mousy in his behavior. In fact, he falls in love with Princess Pea. What will he do for her? I was drawn into this dreamy fairy tale from the first page. I can't say that I fell in love with any of the characters; that doesn't really seem to happen in true fairy tales. But I did fall in love with the book and all the gently-taught lessons it contained. There are lessons about individuality vs conformity, courage, honorable defiance, love, forgiveness, loyalty, envy, and judgment. And they're all presented so subtly that kids probably won't realize they're learning anything. There were several quotes I loved that will show you the heart at the center of this story. "Reader, you must know that an interesting fate (sometimes involving rats, sometimes not) awaits almost everyone, mouse or man, who does not conform." "The sound of the king's music made Despereaux's soul grow large and light inside of him." "Stories are light. Light is precious in a world so dark. Begin at the beginning. Tell Gregory a story. Make some light." "Reader, do you think 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 loved this little fairy tale with a big heart and recommend it. It would be perfect for parents to read aloud with their children. ( ) JG_IntrovertedReader | Apr 3, 2013 | I expected to like this book, but I just couldn't get into it. The author's voice (she keeps addressing "Gentle Reader" or something like that) grated on me and the tale didn't engage my attention. I guess my project to read all the Newbery Medal winners will have to be altered to "at least try a spoonful." I got about a quarter of the way through and had no desire to go farther. Your results may differ. (  ) auntieknickers | Apr 3, 2013 | Review to Follow ( ) suefitz1 | Apr 3, 2013 | This book was really cute—a great story and a great little audiobook! I'm not sure what else to say. The ridiculously long title kinda says what the book is about—a very unusual mouse who falls in love with a princess... It was really cute. ( ) saraferrell | Apr 3, 2013 | Summary: This book was about a mouse that was smaller than the other mouse. He saw the Princess and fell in love. Because of falling in love with the Princess he was sentenced to die in the cellar of the King's palace. He was such a nice mouse, the guard of the cellar helped him escape only to find out the Princess had been taken. The mouse set out on an adventure to save the Princess. Personal Reaction: This was a great read. I loved how the writer made the mouse seem so human in her writings. I enjoyed how the writer also seemed to talk to the readers throughout the book to make sure no one reading would get lost in the story. This book had me wishing at the end that the mouse was a human so he and the Princess could live happily ever after. Classroom Extension: 1. I would use this book to get my students interested in reading and in fairy tales. 2. I would use this book to show my students the power of friendship. WendyBrown | Apr 1, 2013 | I enjoyed DiCamillo's book Because of Winn-Dixie, and I've been meaning to read this for a long time, esp. when it won the Newbery. It was a sweet, charming fairy tale spun with humor and warmth. I think it would be a lovely read-aloud for 3rd - 4th graders, maybe even 2nd. ( ) sriemann | Apr 1, 2013 | Awww. Cute... It did seem to be a bit threadbare at times. But I think that's because the comparison to The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making is inevitable since they're both faux-Victorian fairy tales, and Valente's writing style is so ornate compared to practically anyone else's. ( ) Melanti | Mar 30, 2013 | This was very cute. I want to read it to my kids, when they exist. It was charming in a way that some kid's books miss the mark on. Not too saccharine, but full of hope and love and adventure. ( ) amaraduende | Mar 30, 2013 | This is a delightful story/fairy tale of an extraordinary mouse Despereaux, a rat , Roscuro both with human like traits, feelings and stories. Another character is a girl Miggery Tilling. The setting is in a castle.Their three stories and lives intertwine deeply causing the reader to be drawn in with its fun, sincere, emotional and delighful story. The author engages the reader by speaking to them directly in her writing further engaging them in this story. The theme of this book is staying true to yourself and overcoming perfidy, which occured with each of the characters. This would be a delighful class read aloud and provide great character inferential questions and discussions. It would make for a great story for textual and character analysis . Finally, comparing characters and their traits and identifying the with the theme would be valuable to students. darleenanderson | Mar 27, 2013 | With four small seperate stories told from different view points, one mouse becomes an unlikely hero in a wonderful fantasy, with an enchanting princess. I like this book because there are four stories that are going on that all lead up to one ending, it touches on heavy topics and deception but theres always a choice between good and evil. I recommend this book for children ages 7 and up. KylieNelson | Feb 26, 2013 | The Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup and a Spool of Thread ( ) Bellelinda | Feb 21, 2013 | The story could be better. The ending is anticlimactic. The illustrations are poorly reproduced and hard to see. It's a wonderful book, though, written in a style that's both whimsical and earnest. (  ) comfypants | Jan 31, 2013 | What an enjoyable read! DiCamillo does an outstanding job describing the characters, and I love the way she includes the reader in the story, as if they are there. I think kids would really enjoy this book and relate to all of the characters. One of the best children's books I've read in a while! ( ) abwahl1998 | Jan 16, 2013 | |
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I really enjoyed this book. I thought it was very entertaining. It also had so many good lessons in the story. I think I enjoyed this book so much because I had picked it out to read then in class the next time Mrs. White came in with it and read the first few chapters to us in class. It made me want to read it even more. Then I found out that they are making the movie and now I can’t wait to see it.
In the classroom, I might have the students make a map of what the castle would look like. Then as we read we could follow the characters we read we could follow the characters and where they go. I might also have my class make and eat the soup because it was so important to the story. When the movie comes out we could watch the movie.