The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread

A #1 New York Times bestseller!

A brave mouse, a covetous rat, a wishful serving girl, and a princess named Pea come together in Kate DiCamillo's Newbery Medal–winning tale.

Welcome to the story of Despereaux Tilling, a mouse who is in love with music, stories, and a princess named Pea. It is also the story of a rat called Roscuro, who lives in the darkness and covets a world filled with light. And it is the story of Miggery Sow, a slow-witted serving girl who harbors a simple, impossible wish. These three characters are about to embark on a journey that will lead them down into a horrible dungeon, up into a glittering castle, and, ultimately, into each other's lives. What happens then? As Kate DiCamillo would say: Reader, it is your destiny to find out.
With black-and-white illustrations and a refreshed cover by Timothy Basil Ering.

Kate DiCamillo is the beloved author of many books for young readers, including the Orris and Timble, Mercy Watson, and Tales from Mercy Watson’s Deckawoo Drive series. Her books Flora & Ulysses and The Tale of Despereaux both received Newbery Medals. A former National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature, she lives in Minneapolis.

Timothy Basil Ering is the illustrator of the Newbery Medal winner The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo as well as Walrus Song by Janet Lawler, Finn Throws a Fit! by David Elliott, and Snook Alone by Marilyn Nelson. He is also the author-illustrator of The Story of Frog Belly Rat Bone, Necks Out for Adventure!, The Almost Fearless Hamilton Squidlegger, and The Unexpected Love Story of Alfred Fiddleduckling. Timothy Basil Ering lives in Kingston, Massachusetts.