This book is wicked good.  I think this book is cool because the mouse Desperaux is very smart. There are cool events in this book.  This book also has so much detail in it that you feel that your mind is playing it on the big screen.  I also think that the few drawings in this book are really good.

Ethan H., 4th Grade, Charlestown Elementary School

Do you want to read a really good book that you can really get into?  How about a book about a princess, a mouse and a spool of thread? Well, The Tale of Desperaux by Kate Di Camillo is the book for you!  A baby mouse named Desperaux is born small, sick, with his eyes open and humongous ears!  Enjoy a tale that will take you away.  This book is an unforgettable journey!

Tara, Grade 5, Greenbush Elementary School

The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo is fantasy.  A mouse named Despereaux tries to save a princess named Pea.  Some important characters are Miggory, Roscuro and Cook.  The Setting includes the castle and the dungeon.  One of the most important characters is the King.  The book had no pictures and this isn't important.  I loved this
book!  It was always exciting.  I would recommend this book.  One important hint is that Despereaux used red string…

Alexa, Grade 5, Northern Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln, RI
 

The Tale of Despereaux is an amazing book by Kate DiCamillio.  It is an adventure story of a mouse named Despereaux.  He suddenly meets someone who will change his life.  Along the way there are some other
characters that will take him to the edge!  I liked the book a lot!

Lara, Grade 5, Northern Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln, RI

The Tale of Despereaux is written by Kate DiCamillo.  It was illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering. Despereaux is in love with a princess named Pea. Pea gets captured by a rat named Roscuro. Despereaux is trying to save the princess. Will he save the princess or will he get Captured himself? I loved this book because it had action and something that keeps you going.  I recommend this book to ages 8-12 and grades 3-6 because it has good word choices, but it is hard to keep up  with at times.

Connor    Grade 5  Northern Lincoln Elementary
 

The Tale of Despereaux is by Kate DiCamillo. I liked this book because the animals were very adventurous. This story is about a rat names Despereaux who tries to get married to a princess named Princess Pea. But, Pea gets captured by a rat named Roscuro. This book is fiction because the mice talk and there is a mouse court called the Mouse Council. One of the illustrations is when Despereaux is born with his eyes open and very big ears. I liked this book because there were some funny parts like when Despereaux gets his tail chopped off.   I would recommend this book for grades 4 and up because of the hard word choice.

Chris   Grade 5  Northern Lincoln Elementary
 
 
 

Despereaux is an unusual mouse who doesn't fit in with the other mice in the castle.  Despereaux soon falls deeply in love with a beautiful Princess, and can't stop thinking about her.  This is also the story of Miggory Sow, a poor girl with a huge wish, and a desperate rat named Roscuro.  Despereaux (the small mouse with the huge heart) has to save the Princess.  I really liked when Despereaux finds his true love and falls in deep love.  It is one of the most important parts.  The theme
of Despereaux is bravery.  He must go through the dungeon to save the princess, doing anything that can possibly help.  I think the part that scared him the most was that rats could jump out of nowhere and eat him.  In the end of course everything turns out okay.

Emily, Grade 4, Northern Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln, RI
 

Despereaux is an unusual mouse who doesn't fit in with the other mice in the castle.  He falls in love with a princess, and he must rescue her.  This is also the story of Miggory Sow and Roscuro.  What I like most about this book are the characters.  I also like their emotions.  The emotions including being funny, sad, brave, serious and scared.  I will give this fantasy book 4 stars because it has so many details and so much voice.

Jeanette,  Grade 4, Northern Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln, RI
 

Despereaux is an unusual mouse.  I really liked the characters especially the princess and Despereaux.  I could picture a soft brown little mouse in my head, and I can picture a beautiful princess because the descriptions were so good.  The theme of this story is bravery.  Despereaux must go in a deep dark dungeon full of creatures that would eat him to save the princess.  I would give this fantasy 5 stars.  It was amazing and full of adventures, like being thrown in a dungeon and
escaping, to being sold for a table cloth and a handful of cigarettes, to having soup against the law.  It is a great book.

Michaela, Grade 4, Northern Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln, RI

My favorite book of the 2005 nominees is the Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo.  The Tale of Despereaux is a fantasy book about a little mouse named Despereaux trying to save the princess Pea from an evil rat. I loved this book because it was a new fairy tale with new unknown characters unlike different copies of Cinderella or Rapunzel. I would recommend this book to any fantasy lover in grades 4-6 because the vocabulary is a little challenging but it is a perfect fantasy story.
 

Helen, Northern Lincoln Elementary, Grade 6
 
 

This page was created on April 15, 2004 and updated on February 8, 2005.