Flora+and+Ulysses

By Kate DiCamillo


Flora and Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures 2013 Ages: 8-12 Grade Level: 3-7 Author: Kate DiCamillo Illustrator: K.G. Campbell Publisher: Candlewick Press ISBN: 978-0-7636-6040-6 Hardcover Price: $17.99 Language: English
 * Bibliographical Data**

Won the Newberry Medal in 2014


 * Summary:** Flora, a self-proclaimed cynic who is obsessed with superhero comics, manages to save Ulysses the squirrel from a near fatal accident with a vacuum cleaner. Ulysses develops the ability to fly, be extremely strong, and even type poetry from this incident. Flora makes it her personal responsibility to care for Ulysses and keep him safe from her mother who seems to care about a lamp more than she cares about her. Flora and Ulysses work together to help overcome the obstacles in their lives.


 * Book Review:** After reading this book, I absolutely love it! It was a light, fun story that shows that there is always hope and that people can overcome obstacles. Every time Ulysses the squirrel does something extremely heroic, the book turns to the format of a comic book since the main character loves to read comics. In these sections, that part of the story is told through the comic. This unique format is fun and keeps the reader engaged in what they are reading.


 * Analysis of Literary Elements- Character Development:** Flora, the main character, calls herself a natural born cynic. Her parents are divorced and she lives with her mother who seems to care for a lamp more than she does her own daughter. Flora believes that there is nothing to be hopeful for because nothing ever goes as planned and people never get what they want. She goes by the phrase, “Do not hope; instead, observe.” However, when Ulysses comes into her life, things start to change. She believes he is a superhero and hopes that this is truly the case. After an incident in a Donut Shop, she realized that she was correct. You can see Flora changing throughout the story, beginning to lose her cynical attitude. At the end when her mother kidnaps Ulysses and gets caught in the act when Ulysses uses his superpower of flying to escape, her mother admits to her mistakes and tells Flora that she really does love her. This is the moment that Flora realizes that there is no need to be cynical of the world and that things really can work out the way you wanted them to. This element is there to teach children that you should never give up and always fight for what you believe in.


 * Author Biography:** Kate DiCamillo was born on March 25, 1964 in Philadelphia, PA, but was diagnosed with chronic pneumonia as a child. Because of this, they had to move to the warm southern climate and because she was stuck indoors for so much of her young life, she learned early on that she loved to read and write. She worked in a book warehouse reading children’s books and immediately fell in love with them. She has since written several award winning books including //Because of Winn-Dixie,// //The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, A Princess, Some Soup//, and //A Spool of Thread.//

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 * Related Links:**

This is an interview with the author, Kate Dicamillo who explains how the story came to be, from the beginning to end. She describes how the characters and the story line developed to what it is now.