Raymie Nightingale

Raymie Nightingale
Kate DiCamillo

My rating: ★★★

ISBN: 978-0763681173
Publisher: Candlewick
Date of publication: April 12, 2016
Age: Grades 5 - 8
Genre: Realistic Fiction

Themes: family, friendship, beauty contests, death, courage

Raymie Clarke has come to realize that everything, absolutely everything, depends on her. And she has a plan. If Raymie can win the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition, then her father, who left town two days ago with a dental hygienist, will see Raymie's picture in the paper and (maybe) come home. To win, not only does Raymie have to do good deeds and learn how to twirl a baton; she also has to contend with the wispy, frequently fainting Louisiana Elefante, who has a show-business background, and the fiery, stubborn Beverly Tapinski, who’s determined to sabotage the contest. But as the competition approaches, loneliness, loss, and unanswerable questions draw the three girls into an unlikely friendship—and challenge each of them to come to the rescue in unexpected ways.

I hope I not booed off of the internet for not loving this book. I mean, goodness knows I loved Flora & Ulysses, so it's nothing against DiCamillo's style. I just wasn't pulled in with this one. I wasn't invested in the characters. It's still deep and intriguing and (I'm sure) a Newbery contender, but I, myself, felt rather "meh" after the whole thing.

Here's some specifics: I felt that the book and the individual chapters were too brief. And yet, the story itself was rather slow—the friendship between the main characters and the move to resolve the various problems took a while. So it was left a big lacking. The ending, however, was quite fantastic and had me satisfied. The characters, as I mentioned, were not my favorite, though they were quite the characters—each with their own set of problems and individualities (I did admire Louisiana more than I thought I would). In the end, I'd recommend it to the DiCamillo fan, sure, but I'm not rushing to put it into people's hands.

Find it at your library or on Amazon

Leroy Ninker Saddles Up

Leroy Ninker Saddles Up
(Tales from Deckawoo Drive #1)
Written by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by Chris Van Dusen

My rating: ★★★

ISBN: 978-0763663391
Publisher: Candlewick
Date of publication: August 26, 2014
Age: Grades 2 - 4

Themes: cowboys, compliments, responsibility, tracking

With his hat, books, and lasso, Leroy Ninker has always dreamed of being a cowboy. But then his friend, Beatrice, points out the obvious: he has no horse. So he wrestles fate into the ground and, through an ad in the newspaper, meets Maybelline. It is love at first sight. However, it turns out caring for Maybelline just may be more work than Leroy is prepared to do...

So this book is a spin-off series. In the first book of the series about Mercy Watson, DiCamillo's famed pig, we are first introduced to Leroy as a thief in the night. Well, he is up and reformed. Now, he is rather in love with the idea of being a cowboy and in love with his horse (it gets pretty mushy at a few parts). He's a pretty cute character and the horse is absolutely charming as well. Overall, the story is a good one. As for the writing...well, let's just say I was surprised to find words like "cogitate" and "rue" and quite a few others that would challenge even the excelled reader. It's definitely a good one if you want kids to expand their vocabulary!

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Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures
Kate DiCamillio
Illustrations by K. G. Campbell

My rating: ★★★★★

ISBN: 9780763660406
Publisher: Candlewick
Date of publication: September 24, 2013
Age: Grades 4 and up
Genre: Realistic Fiction/Superhero Comic (yep)

Themes: super powers, family relations, cynacism, adventure

Awards: Newberry Medal (2014)

The squirrel did not notice the Ulysses Super-Suction, Multi-Terrain 2000X vacuum come up from behind. Self-proclaimed cynic Flora, having observed the accident while reading her favorite super hero comic, ran to his aide. She was amazed to find the squirrel not only alive, but bestowed with the powers of strength, flight, and misspelled poetry! And so begin their adventures together. Flora just may learn to feel hope and love once again.

I loved it. Simply perfect. The characters are eccentric, but so lovable—for crying out loud, it’s a squirrel that writes poetry! The format is inventive: half novel, half graphic novel. Plus, that makes it a quick, fun read. My favorite part is that, even though it’s this quirky story and format, it still has depth. It tackles Flora’s strained family relations and her own cynical attitude. It totally deserves the Newberry.

Find it at your library or on Amazon