Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this book. It was published June 9th 2020, by Candlewick Press.
This book filled my heart so full I thought it just might burst with happiness. Truthfully almost all of Kate DiCamillo’s books leave me feeling like this, but her Deckawoo Drive series is especially endearing. I am a serious fan.
Stella Suzanne Endicott thinks her second grade teacher, Miss Tamar Liliana, is a “Good Fairy Who Vanquishes Old and Irritated Wizards.” She’s not so fond of Horace Broom who knows the answers to every question Miss Liliana asks.
When she lets Horace read her poem, they get in an argument over where pigs live. Horace insists that they live on a farm so Stella cannot possibly have a pig friend who sits on couches. The two end up in a shouting match and are sent to the principal’s office.
On the way Horace falls apart emotionally and Stella tries her best to encourage him to face what is to come. Before their day is over, the two of them end up trapped in a janitor’s closet. What we discover is that as these two children face adversity, they survive because of their combined different strengths.
Although the ending was not unexpected, I was still delighted by it. Not only do they become friends, they learn that life is all about patterns and surprises. All of us, no matter our ages, can stand to be reminded of this jewel of truth.
I love that Stella lives on Deckawoo Drive and through her, we readers get to spend time with Mercy and find out how things are going with Baby and Eugenia Lincoln.
I love Chris Van Dusen’s art in all the other books in the series and am looking forward to seeing the finished illustrations for this one.
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