DiCamillo, Kate. 2013. FLORA AND ULYSSES: THE ILLUMINATED
ADVENTURES. Ill. by K.G. Campbell. Somerville, MA: Candlewick. ISBN 9780763660406
[Suggested Grade Levels 3- 6]
REVIEW
Flora is a “natural born cynic.” She spends her time reading
comics and studying the bonus sections entitled Terrible Things can Happen to You! and The Criminal Element Among Us. (“Flora found it wise to be
prepared.”) She reminds herself not to
hope; instead observe. But in a series of “unanticipated occurrences,” a
squirrel is vacuumed up by her neighbor and transformed into a typing, poetry-writing,
flying superhero that brings surprises, new friends, and adventure into Flora’s
life. He enables her to face issues with her parents and to finally hope again.
Through quirky characters, humor, and exquisite word choice,
Kate DiCamillo creates a delightful, heartwarming fantasy. Campbell’s gentle
pencil illustrations created in the style of Flora’s beloved The Illuminated Adventures of the Amazing
Incandesto! are the perfect complement to the endearing tale. Readers
suspend belief as they fall in love with this verse-writing squirrel and the
girl he adores. Once again master author DiCamillo uses small characters to
tell a big story about what truly matters in life.
CONNECTIONS
Use Ulysses’s free verse and his list of words to inspire
readers to create their own poetry. Children can also create comic strips of
Flora and Ulysses, the Amazing Incandesto, or original characters. They can create
editions of Terrible Things can Happen to
You! or The Criminal Element Among Us.
Exclamations and dialogue are used throughout the text and comics. Readers can identify the different types of
sentences used in these exchanges and then write their own.
RELATED
BOOKS
Other fantasies that celebrate words and
transport readers to magical worlds:
Blackwood, Sage. JINX. ISBN 9780062129901
Lloyd, Natalie. A SNICKER OF MAGIC. ISBN 9780545552707
No comments:
Post a Comment