(Book Cover Source: http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/50693525&referer=brief_results, accessed November 22, 2008)
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
DiCamillo, Kate. 2003. The tale of Despereaux: being the story of a mouse, a princess, some soup and a spool of thread. Ill. by Timothy Basil Ering. Cambridge: Candlewick Press. ISBN 0763617229
2. PLOT SUMMARY:
Winner of the 2004 Newbery Award, Kate DiCamillo's The Tale of Despereaux is a fantasy, told in four "books." "Book The First: A Mouse Is Born," begins with the birth of the main hero, Despereaux, a mouse who is different from the other mice. This unusually small mouse with enormous ears lives with his family in the castle of the king. Although his siblings try to educate him in the ways of being a mouse, he is drawn to beautiful things like stained glass, fairy tales, music, and most of all, the king's daughter Princess Pea. Banished to the dungeon for breaking the mouse society rules, Despereaux must descend into the darkness where the deadly rats live.
"Book The Second: Chiaroscuro" introduces one of the dungeon rats, of whom the author tells us his name means "darkness and light together." Another misfit among his peers, Roscuro loves the light and, like Despereaux, is drawn to where he shouldn't go. He ultimately ends up in the queen's soup causing the queen to die of shock. When Roscuro sees the princess glaring at him with disgust and anger, it breaks his heart, sowing the seeds for Roscuro's plans for vengeance against the princess.
"Book The Third: Gor! The Tale of Miggery Sow" introduces a young peasant girl who was sold by her father into servitude. She has been clouted so many times by her owner, she has lost most of her hearing and her ears look like cauliflowers. Rather slow-witted, she dreams of becoming a princess. Through the course of events, she ends up working as a servant at the castle, where Roscuro convinces her to be part of his plot to kidnap the princess and take her to the dungeon.
"Book The Fourth: Recalled To The Light" brings all of these characters together in a dramatic finish. Despereaux, having heard Roscuro describe his plans, realizes he is the only one who can save the princess. He descends once more into the dungeon with a needle as his sword, and rescues the princess. The story ends mostly happily. Illustrating the lesson of forgiveness, the princess, "to save her own heart," extends forgiveness to Roscuro. In turn, he reunites Miggery with her repentant father, who treats her like a princess for the rest of her days. As for Despereaux, the author writes, "Did he live happily after? Well, he did not marry the princess, if that is what you mean by happily ever after. Even in a world as strange as this one, a mouse and a princess cannot marry. But reader, they can be friends. And they were. Together they had many adventures."
The story closes with a "Coda" from the author. In it, she harkens back to Despereaux whispering a story into the jailer's ear, to save them from the darkness. She reminds us of the jailer saying, "Stories are light," and concludes by saying, "Reader, I hope you have found some light here."
3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS:
Having won the Newbery Award and glowing reviews from renowned sources, it would be easy to chime in and rave about The Tale of Despereaux along with everyone else. However, in a departure from the norm (and my usual style of leaving my personal reaction to the end of the review), I am going to begin by saying that I thoroughly disliked this book for three main reasons.
First, is the style in which DiCamillo has written the tale. While other reviewers have praised it as intimate, and as a return to literary traditions of old, I found it to be intrusive, patronizing, and annoying. I imagine I am not alone in wishing to be swept away by the reading experience, immersing myself in a fantasy world. Thus, to be interrupted and told what to think is irritating, as when DiCamillo writes, "Reader, you may ask this question; in fact you must ask this question: Is it ridiculous for a very small, sickly big-eared mouse to fall in love with a beautiful human princess named Pea? The answer is . . . yes. Of course, it's ridiculous." At other times, the author becomes even more directive, as when she writes, "Close your eyes, please, and consider it for just a moment. Done? I hope that the hair on the back of your neck stood up as you thought of Mig's fate and how it would be if it were your own. Poor Mig. What will become of her? You must, frightened though you may be, read on and see for yourself. Reader, it is your duty." Each time DiCamillo interrupts the narrative in this way, I feel jerked out of the story and annoyed by the patronizing tone. I also prefer to do my own thinking.
The second criticism is the depiction of the characters in the story. Not only are all of them portrayed in shallow ways, there are rampant stereotypes throughout the story. A French or Italian reader might be thoroughly offended, along with anyone who abhors casting slow-witted people as lazy and greedy. Despereaux's French mother, Antoinette, is depicted as shallow, self-absorbed, and unloving. When told at Despereaux's birth that he was the only one of his litter to be born alive, she exclaims, "All of that work for nothing . . . It is such the disappointment." When Despereaux is being condemned by the mouse tribunal, he easily spots his mother in the crowd because, "In honor of her youngest mouse being sent to the dungeon, she had put on a tremendous amount of makeup." As for the Italian slurs, the rats have all been given Italian names like Botticelli and Roscuro. They are described by others as "filthy," "black-souled," and "evil." In describing themselves, Botticelli states, "Reducing a prisoner to weeping and wailing and begging is a delightful way to invest your existence with meaning." Although Roscuro eventually redeems himself to some extent, the overall impression of Italians with which the reader is left is still very negative. As for Miggery Sow's character, DiCamillo tells us, "Reader, as the teller of this tale, it is my duty from time to time to utter some hard and rather disagreeable truths." She describes how large Mig becomes from overeating, her laziness and slow-wittedness, and follows this with examples of the mistakes she makes as a servant. Her difficulty in hearing (brought on by constant abuse in her childhood) is repeatedly the source of jests. This portrayal of a child with special needs is extremely offensive. As for Despereaux and Roscuro, while one can relate to their appreciation of light and beauty, it is difficult to relate to anything else about them. Perhaps it is because rather than drawing out their character development, the author has instead chosen to quickly and repeatedly tell us what to think about them. This is no substitution for authentic character development.
The third criticism of the story is the darkness of the tone. The typical fairy tale themes of quests, heroism, and love are not enough to override the darkness. DiCamillo actually addresses this, telling the reader, "The story is not a pretty one. There is violence in it. And cruelty. But stories that are not pretty have a certain value, too . . . Everything, cannot always be sweetness and light." Still, when one considers this story is aimed at children, and it is full of parents who betray their offspring in direct and indirect ways, the celebration of malevolent intentions by the rats, and violence (as when Despereaux's tale is chopped off), it is rough going, indeed. Ering's pencil illustrations do little to lighten this tone. Aside from the clever use of light and dark, which reflects the chiaroscuro theme of the tale, the images are unappealing and scary. In particular, Gregory and the rats are drawn in ways that emphasize their repulsiveness, with awful teeth and squinting eyes.
These major complaints aside, there are some minor pleasures in reading the book. DiCamillo's writing is rich with metaphors and imagery, as when she writes, "And so he was reading the story as if it were a spell and the words of it, spoken aloud, could make magic happen." Another example is when she writes, "His own brother was delivering him to the dungeon. His heart stopped beating and shrunk to a small, cold, disbelieving pebble." Often, the writing has a poetic lilt, making it a pleasure to read aloud, as when she writes, "The minstrels were strumming and singing. The people were laughing and eating. The man with the jingle cap was juggling and jingling." On the other hand, the language, though poetic, can also be a bit lofty for children, as when she uses words like "chiaroscuro" and writes dialogue like, "Am I right in ascertaining that you have aspirations?"
Another strength is the way the author uses foreshadowing to engage the reader and build suspense throughout the book. For example, early on, DiCamillo writes, "Despereaux did not know it, but he would need, very soon, to be brave himself. Have I mentioned that beneath the castle there was a dungeon? In the dungeon, there were rats. Large rats. Mean rats. Despereaux was destined to meet those rats. Reader, you must know that an interesting fate (sometimes involving rats, sometimes not) awaits almost everyone, mouse or man, who does not conform." Another example is when DiCamillo introduces Miggery Sow and writes, "And though she did not yet know it, she would be instrumental in helping the rat work his revenge."
A final strength is the way in which DiCamillo has described the setting. The dark, foul dungeon teeming with rats, the castle filled with music and light, and the warm, comforting taste of soup are all evocatively rendered with DiCamillo's vivid prose. These are the images that stay with the reader long after the story is finished.
4. REVIEW EXCERPTS:
Booklist: "And as with the best stories, there are important messages tucked in here and there, so subtly that children who are carried away by the words won't realize they have been uplifted until much later."
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books: "There is a classic charm to this picaresque tale of an idealistic mouse suffering unrequited love for a princess; that and a pace that lends itself to reading aloud will make this novel a favorite among those ready for some gentle questing."
Christian Science Monitor: "There's a literal and figurative gloom here, but the light of humor, hope, redemption, and forgiveness wins out. This is a novel about the weight of words and the power of a story to shape a life - or even transform it."
School Library Journal: "With a masterful hand, DiCamillo weaves four story lines together in a witty, suspenseful narrative that begs to be read aloud . . . This expanded fairy tale is entertaining, heartening, and above all, great fun."
5. CONNECTIONS:
*As many reviewers have commented, this story would make an excellent read aloud. The author even pauses and asks the reader to say words aloud, as when she writes, "Quest. Say it, reader. Say the word "quest" out loud. It is an extraordinary word, isn't it? So small and yet so full of wonder, so full of hope." One can picture an entire classroom of children saying the word "quest" in unison. One would hope that in discussing the story with the class at large, teachers would address some of the negative aspects like stereotyping. After reading aloud from the story, it could also be an excellent source for class writing assignments. Themes such as courage, heroism, and forgiveness would make excellent topics.
*If a reader or teacher were looking for another story by Kate DiCamillo to read for pleasure or in order to make comparisons, the following is a wonderful tale:
DiCamillo, Kate. The miraculous journey of Edward Tulane. ISBN 0763639877.
While I was rather negative about The Tale of Despereaux, I actually chose it from the list because I was so touched when I read The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, it made me weep. I was hoping for a similar experience with The Tale of Despereaux, but alas, did not find the light DiCamillo was hoping I would find. The Miraculous Journey of Eward Tulane is a much shorter book, but Edward's character and transformation are much more developed. I would highly recommend it.
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