Summary from Goodreads:
From two-time Newbery Medalist Kate DiCamillo and two-time Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall comes a fantastical meditation on fate, love, and the power of words to spell the world.
We shall all, in the end, be led to where we belong. We shall all, in the end, find our way home.
In a time of war, a mysterious child appears at the monastery of the Order of the Chronicles of Sorrowing. Gentle Brother Edik finds the girl, Beatryce, curled in a stall, wracked with fever, coated in dirt and blood, and holding fast to the ear of Answelica the goat. As the monk nurses Beatryce to health, he uncovers her dangerous secret, one that imperils them all--for the king of the land seeks just such a girl, and Brother Edik, who penned the prophecy himself, knows why.
And so it is that a girl with a head full of stories--powerful tales-within-the-tale of queens and kings, mermaids and wolves--ventures into a dark wood in search of the castle of one who wishes her dead. But Beatryce knows that, should she lose her way, those who love her--a wild-eyed monk, a man who had once been king, a boy with a terrible sword, and a goat with a head as hard as stone--will never give up searching for her, and to know this is to know everything. With its timeless themes, unforgettable cast, and magical medieval setting, Kate DiCamillo's lyrical tale, paired with resonant black-and-white illustrations by Caldecott Medalist Sophie Blackall, is a true collaboration between masters.
Review:
At this point, Kate DiCamillo could write anything and I’d buy it for my library and most likely want to own it too. I loved this. There’s something so special about the characters DiCamillo writes. She can write believable children who dream about stories and mermaids. And she can write about laughing kings who have abandoned the throne for the woods. Then there’s monks who write prophecies who have soft spots for girls who aren’t supposed to know how to read. And you can’t help but love all of them! How does she do that?
At first, this book comes off as something light. You think it’s about monks who are afraid of a tenacious goat and a girl with amnesia. But, then it gets seriously dark. There are robbers who kill parents. And there are soldiers who kill children. And you learn that Beatryce can’t remember because she wants to not remember the terrible things of her past.
But, there is also a monk who risks everything to help a child. And an old king who risks coming back the life he despises to save the child. There’s humorous goat that protects the motley crew. There’s also the errand boy who learns to read. Beatrice learns the power of words and friendship. And I guess this story has a little bit of everything: lightness, darkness, adventure, humor, love, friendship, family, prophecy, and power.
There’s a moment when Beatryce tells the evil King in power a story about a mermaid and I can’t help but think about Scheherazade. There are certain classical elements to this story that also remind me of The Canterbury Tales and the kids book The Inquisitor’s Tale by Adam Gidwitz; however, this book is all it’s own. I can see kids discussing this one for years to come. I give it 10/10.
