The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo

Yoko Tanaka’s illustrations have a soft Chris Van Allsburg-esque quality, which lend atmosphere to the tale. The prose is remarkably simple, with underpinnings of delicious dry humor. Everything about this story is masterful. Newbery Award winner DiCamillo has long been a word virtuoso, and this novel solidifies that role. Soon, a chain of events-some mundane, some amazing-results in a simple but impeccably well-told tale about belief, wonder and making the extraordinary come true. This spectacular event proves fortuitous for Peter and the rest of the town, who become inexplicably drawn to the elephant-a vessel, of sorts, through which they channel their hopes, dreams and wishes. When a magician’s trick goes awry, an elephant is sent crashing through the roof of an opera house, disabling a town noblewoman. The puzzled boy begins his quest to unravel the fortune teller’s meaning. The fortune teller reveals that his sister is alive and advises Peter, in enigmatic soothsayer fashion, to “follow the elephant” to find out more. There they follow 10-year-old Peter Augustus Duchene, a poor orphan who spends his last coin on a fortune teller, seeking the answer to one question-whatever became of his long-thought-dead sister?

From page one, readers are transported to the market square in Baltese, some 200 years ago. Once inside, however, that intrigue builds immediately, as Kate DiCamillo-in her eloquent, yet understated, prose-unveils the book’s suspense-filled theme.

With atmospheric illustrations by fine artist Yoko Tanaka, here is a dreamlike and captivating tale that could only be told by Kate DiCamillo.At first glance, the intriguing title and cover illustration will pique readers’ curiosity about the eponymous pachyderm of The Magician’s Elephant. What if? Why not? Could it be? When a fortune-teller's tent appears in the market square of the city of Baltese, orphan Peter Augustus Duchene knows the questions that he must ask: Does his sister still live? And if so, how can he find her? The fortune-teller's mysterious answer (An elephant! An elephant will lead you there!) sets off a chain of events so remarkable, so impossible, that you will hardly dare to believe it is true.

In this timeless fable, New York Times bestselling author, twice winner of the prestigious Newbery Medal and US National Ambassador for Children's Literature Kate DiCamillo evokes the largest of themes - hope and belonging, desire and compassion - with the lightness of a magician's touch.Īnother classic in the making by Kate DiCamillo, New York Times bestselling author and twice winner of the prestigious Newbery Medal. Schools & English Language Center Discount.

The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo