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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
I think that, as an adult, it can sometimes be hard to accurately rate a children's book. Cruelty & violence distract me from children's stories, similar to being in a movie and worrying about how kids in the theater are reacting to what is on the screen. Specific to this story, a girl is sold into slavery & is beaten so regularly that she goes nearly deaf and is hit in the face often enough that she loses her sense of smell. I think stories are a way to introduce hard truths to children in a way that they can understand, but I personally don't have a good idea of where that threshold is for me...especially since my kids are a bit younger.
This was a good story about a mouse, a princess, a rat, and a servant...about light & dark, pain, yearning, bravery, forgiveness, and soup.
I'll give it to Amelia (grade 4) and see what she thinks of it.
This was a good story about a mouse, a princess, a rat, and a servant...about light & dark, pain, yearning, bravery, forgiveness, and soup.
I'll give it to Amelia (grade 4) and see what she thinks of it.
My aunt gave this to me for Christmas 2005 thinking that I would like to read it to my daughter some day. I read it in early 2006 and then read it to my daughter (4) in early 2007. I think it's an interesting, if dark, story. There's just something about a princess named Pea . . .
My girls ended up being too scared for the dungeon stuff before bed and quit 3/4 (😫) through, but I finished myself and thought it was so cute. Love the character of Despereux and the character traits discussed throughout (empathy, listening, love). I did feel like the end was pretty rushed, considering all the set up.
Had my daughter read this for school and then we watched the movie afterwards. She wasn't able to tell me much about the differences between the two, so I decided to read it myself. It's a good book, well written. The story is actually fairly different from the movie, quite a bit darker, but I think it works better in getting the point of the book across, that life is not always light and sunshine. There are dark times that leave us scarred and change us, but it's up to us to make what we can of it. Also, there are consequences for everything we do in life, big and small. It's a little sad that these lessons get watered down in the movie. If I had to pick one of the two for a kid to see/read, it would definitely be the book by far.
This was a teacher read aloud when I was in 4th grade and I loved it then! This was fun to jump around and see all the different stories connect.
Definitely a strange little book, but a great romp. It's quirky in a charming way, but definitely go in expecting whimsy and weirdness. There's a lot of breaking the 4th wall which I thought was done well once I realized it was a part of the gimmick. It's not mind blowing, but a good addition to a list of books to read during cold dreary days.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I actually really liked this book. The rats and the red thread scared the shit out of me, not in that immediate jumpscare type of fear, but the slow creeping dread that gets under your skin and stays there like a bruise.
I found myself disappointed by the end of this book. The writing is excellent, characters are solid but the story itself, in my opinion, fell short of my expectation. Tho, I do recommend to read it out loud to younger children.
Yes, I did cry when Despereaux fell in love with the princess. The language is beautiful, the characters are believable, the hope is palpable.