78 pages • 2 hours read
Kate DiCamilloA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Despereaux is the youngest and smallest mouse of the Tilling family. Born with large ears and a tiny frame, he seems unequipped for castle life. His interests in light and humans (particularly the princess) set him apart from other mice and eventually lead to his condemnation by the Mouse Council. Young Despereaux is frail and sickly, and his mother condemns him to a life of “desperation” as per his name.
As Despereaux accepts the dangerous quest of saving Princess Pea from Roscuro, he gains confidence and courage to the point where he is able to imagine himself as a knight in shining armor. The small mouse traverses the dungeon’s maze and his own pain while rescuing the princess, all for the sake of love.
Despereaux does not transform into a ruthless warrior, however (i.e., he spares Roscuro). His greatest strengths are his loyalty and sense of devotion. His diminutive size aside, Despereaux proves an individual with a big heart. He grows as a character, acknowledging his ambivalence toward other mice’s opinions of him after surviving the dungeon.
Princess Pea is the 12-year-old heir of the Kingdom of Dor. As for her conscience, “Like most hearts, it was complicated, shaded with dark and dappled with light” (197).
By Kate DiCamillo
Because of Winn-Dixie
Kate DiCamillo
Beverly, Right Here
Kate DiCamillo
Flora And Ulysses
Kate DiCamillo
Raymie Nightingale
Kate DiCamillo
The Beatryce Prophecy
Kate DiCamillo
The Magician's Elephant
Kate DiCamillo
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
Kate DiCamillo
The Tiger Rising
Kate DiCamillo
Action & Adventure
View Collection
Animals in Literature
View Collection
Books & Literature
View Collection
Books Made into Movies
View Collection
Class
View Collection
Class
View Collection
Family
View Collection
Fantasy & Science Fiction Books...
View Collection
Fate
View Collection
Forgiveness
View Collection
Friendship
View Collection
Good & Evil
View Collection
Grief
View Collection
Juvenile Literature
View Collection
School Book List Titles
View Collection