4 stars – I liked it; it was good
I can’t remember clearly, but I think I read the original novel in elementary school, then watched the movie. This book is a written version of the movie, and includes full colour images as well.
Read: March 9 – March 10, 2024
Genre: Fantasy, Fairy Tale
Audience: Children
Book contains: grief, mentions of death, mentions of abuse, exile, revenge
Purchase a copy from Amazon.ca
Purchase a copy of the original novel by Kate DiCamillo from Amazon.ca
The kingdom of Dor was once a happy, bright town, but the actions of a single rat sent it into a state of mourning. And you know what they say: When the world needs it most, a hero shall appear. Despereaux Tilling is a mouse who loves adventure and bravery in a world of the meek and cowardly. For this, he is outcast from his home to the world of the rats, who live deep in the dungeon of Dor.
As I mentioned, I previously watched the movie that this book is based on, so I knew exactly how the story would go even before opening it. Despite this, I was still taken in by the tale and was even helped along by the images and voices that easily came to me while reading.
This book was nice and sweet, and I was quick at reading it, as I was engaged in the adventure and terror. Having the movie scenes in my head made it almost like an audiobook, despite just reading it the old fashioned way.
The book is over 200 pages, but it’s styled like a children’s book—with large text and generous margins. As it is based on a movie, a lot of the text is dialogue, narration, and physical description, but once in a while, the story included something that I didn’t pick up from the movie, such as the fact that Boldo is a genie (I always assumed he was some other strange magical element).
While the title talks about Despereaux the mouse, there are quite a few more “main” characters in this book. For one thing, Despereaux doesn’t come in until chapter eight. It really starts with Roscuro, the rat who sets the darkness in motion. There is also a serving girl named Miggery Sow, whose own pain dictates a lot of what happens in the story. Other characters include Princess Pea, a reactionary character at most, the mice in Despereaux’s village who don’t understand his desire for boldness, the rats of the dungeon with whom Roscuro doesn’t fit in either, and the miscellaneous characters within the castle who play smaller roles.
I love how the themes of this story tie in so nicely with the characters. Roscuro is a rat who has an affinity for light, which sets him apart from the other rats, while Despereaux is a mouse who values bravery and courage, which sets him apart from the other mice. Many of the characters face hardship in different forms, which leads to the ultimate theme of the story: the duality of grief and forgiveness. The relationships between the characters also reflect this beautifully.
As I mentioned, most of the description was physical, but I found it really well done. It matched the movie exactly as I pictured, and I was never drawn out of the flow of the words. It was simplistic and fun—great for young readers.
The scenes all followed the movie, so the pacing wasn’t bad, but I was surprised just how far into the book the main action started. Given Despereaux was only introduced in chapter 8, I shouldn’t have been surprised, but the book was nearly over before the “turn” from light to darkness.
This book is a great choice for kids—and for those who enjoyed the movie. I highly recommend it!
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