Kate DiCamillo
Kate DiCamillo
Katrina Elizabeth "Kate" DiCamillo is an American writer of children's fiction for all reading levels, usually featuring animals. She is one of six people to win two Newbery Medals, recognizing her novels The Tale of Despereauxand Flora and Ulysses. Her best-known books for young children are Mercy Watson series illustrated by Chris Van Dusen...
ProfessionChildren's Author
Date of Birth25 March 1964
CityPhiladelphia, PA
bravery defiance reader
Despereaux marveled at his own bravery. He admired his own defiance. And then, reader, he fainted.
believe heart world
I believe, sometimes, that the whole world has an aching heart.
beautiful mother disappointment
At the thought of being eaten by rats, Despereaux forgot about being brave. He forgot about not being a disappointment. He felt himself heading into another faint. But his mother, who had an excellent sense of dramatic timing, beat him to it; she executed a beautiful, flawless swoon, landing right at Despereaux's feet.
book thinking virtue
It's a book [Bink & Gollie] about shortness and tallness, so I think it's appropriate to discuss the virtues of shortness.
powerful moving mountain
Love, as we have already discussed, is a powerful, wonderful, ridiculous thing, capable of moving mountains. And spools of thread.
mother farewell son
Farewell” is not the word that you would like to hear from your mother as you are being led to the dungeon by 2 oversize mice in black hoods. Words that you would like to hear are “Take me instead, I will go to the dungeon in my sons place.” There is a great deal of comfort in those words.
stars shine-bright shining
Have you, in truth, ever seen something so heartbreakingly lovely? What are we to make of a world where stars shine bright in the midst of so much darkness and gloom?
girl
The way we started was, Alison [McGhee] said, 'Tall girl, short girl.' We had no plans beyond that.
revenge heart fate
There are those hearts, reader, that never mend again once they are broken. Or if they do mend, they heal themselves in a crooked and lopsided way, as if sewn together by a careless craftsman. Such was the fate of Chiaroscuro. His heart was broken. Picking up the spoon and placing it on his head, speaking of revenge, these things helped him to put his heart together again. But it was, alas, put together wrong.
father heart two
But still, here are the words Despereaux Tilling spoke to his father. He said, "I forgive you, Pa!" And he said those words because he sensed that it was the only way to save his heart, to stop it from breaking in two. Despereaux, reader, spoke those words to save himself.
heart broken together
There are hearts, reader, that never mend again once they are broken. Or if they do mend, they heal themselves in a crooked and lopsided way, as if sewn together by a careless craftsman.
ideas listening stories
There is no right or wrong way to tell a story. You have to find your own way. You can get your idea from listening, looking, or imagining. Stories are everywhere. All you have to do is pay attention.
names doubt lasts
All of God's creatures have names, every last one of them. Of that I am sure: of that I have no doubt at all.
beautiful beautiful-things
Life was so short; so many beautiful things slipped away.