Extravaganza Continued

Oh my goodness I forgot to review Despereaux! How could I? Here goes:

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

This is the story of an unlikely hero with very big ears -- Despereaux the mouse. Our hero is a misfit among mice -- what is to become of him? And what about the kidnapped princess? The dungeon rats, and the sad serving girl Miggory Sow? You'll just have to read it to find out.

I bought it. Need I say more? Ok, I will. This is a simple tale that manages somehow to be very fulfilling. It is not all smiles -- no, I've heard it described as "a dark tale, chivalrously 'romantic'" (good one, mom). I would definitely describe it as romantic. Its got the sense of honor, duty, bravery, and transcending light thrown in to the shadows, if you will. Ah, I don't know how to explain it! Just read it for yourself!