is the enchantingly simple story of Peter Duchesne who works up the courage to ask a fortune-teller a most pressing question. When the answer is inextricably connected to an elephant, he begins a remarkable quest to find something he lost.
Things I Liked:
Oh, how I love Kate DiCamillo. She has this way of writing that is deceptively simplified and yet has such power and meaning and beauty. The words and sentences are plain, but the story and the meanings say so much more. I love the quirky characters, though we don't learn much about them (short book). I love the questioning that people must do in order to change or accept things. I love the children in the story. I guess I just have to say "I loved it" and end there.
Favorite lines:
"How will the world change if we do not question it?" p. 143
"There is as much magic in making things disappear as there is in making them appear. More, perhaps. The undoing is almost always more difficult than the doing." p.185
Things I Didn't Like:
Honestly, I can't think of anything. I wish it had been a tiny bit longer (though, I think the length works, especially for kids).
Read-alikes:
Definitely try The Tale of Despereaux
and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
also by Kate DiCamillo.BOOK CONTENT RATINGS:
s-factor: none
mrg-factor: none
v-factor: none
Overall rating: *****
