Edward is the much-adored and pampered china bunny of 10-year-old Abilene. However, the life that he seemed to take for granted takes some interesting turns when he is lost at sea, recovered, and lost again several times. He experiences life with an array of people from various walks of life, but of all the lessons he learns the greatest of these is love. Ibatouilline‘s acrylic gouache illustrations are stunning and at times haunting. DiCamillo’s multi-layered story is skillfully written.
School Library Journal Best Books, Booklist Editor's Choice
Thursday, February 1, 2007
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5 comments:
I second!
That Edward's journey is both psychological and physical will ring true to all readers that have ever grown through suffering, and circumstances out of their control. Edward chooses his quality of personal character in the way he reacts to his circumstances. DiCamillo teaches this lesson without preaching or didactic prose.
This novel embues a sense of melancholy throughout, but offers hope at the end.
I know this was a Notable book, but somehow it seems a bit derivative to me. I kept thinking of The Velveteen Rabbit. Also, I was pretty sure of how it would end. What do some others think?
I agree. It is definately the same basic theme as the Velveteen Rabbit and that skewed my opinion for about the first half of reading it. By the time I finished, though, I loved Edward and felt as warm and fuzzy as any reading of V.R. Perhaps it's time for a more "worldly" version.
I didn't feel as much of a parallel to the Velveteen Rabbit. Edward is so aloof compared to the Velveteen Rabbit. I also thought he would be reunited with his original owner from the beginning--it is a miraculous journey, after all. It didn't bother me that I knew that was coming--it made me feel more secure knowing that there would be a happy ending for Edward and it was easier to bear his trials.
I felt this was rather like Dickens Christmas Carol, you know Scrooge is going to come around and you like watching it happen. I enjoyed Edward learning to love.
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