I’m a great fan of Kate DiCamillo’s work. So much so that I follow her FB page for updates.

However, I just couldn’t get into “The Tale of Despereaux” for some reason. Perhaps it was the way Kate directly addressed the reader in some parts. I found that distracting as it prevented me from immersing wholeheartedly into the narrative. But a simple FB search revealed that parents or teachers enjoy reading this aloud to kids. So, I guess I gotta regard this as a read-aloud book.

Still, the chapters are short and breezy, so I wasn’t adverse to turning the page. The Tale of Despereaux comprises four books, three of which are written from the perspective of a main character. Despereaux, the mouse. Roscuro, a rodent. And Princess Pea, a princess.

Roscuro is short for Chiaroscuro, an Italian word for the arrangement of light and darkness. I thought this was an inspired move by Kate because at the core of it all, the tale is about Despereaux venturing into a dungeon. Armed with a needle, he is on a quest to save Princess Pea, the girl he loves, from being held hostage by Roscuro. He is small, but love empowers him to be strong and brave. It is a nice twist to the collocation “knight in shining armour”. There are probably kids who hold this to heart and find the courage to unravel their inner warrior.