Flora & Ulysses
The Illuminated Adventures
Age 8+
General Fiction Humorous Stories
Winner of the 2014 Newbery Medal
Holy unanticipated occurrences! A cynic meets an unlikely superhero in a genre-breaking novel by master storyteller Kate DiCamillo.
It begins, as the best superhero stories do, with a tragic accident that has unexpected consequences. The squirrel never saw the vacuum cleaner coming, but self-described cynic Flora Belle Buckman, who has read every issue of the comic book Terrible Things Can Happen to You!, is the just the right person to step in and save him. What neither can predict is that Ulysses (the squirrel) has been born anew, with powers of strength, flight, and misspelled poetry — and that Flora will be changed too, as she discovers the possibility of hope and the promise of a capacious heart. From #1 New York Times best-selling author Kate DiCamillo comes a laugh-out-loud story filled with eccentric, endearing characters and featuring an exciting format — a novel interspersed with comic-style graphic sequences and full-page illustrations, all rendered in black-and-white by artist K. G. Campbell.
Creators
Kate DiCamillo is the author of many beloved books for young readers, including The Tale of Despereaux, which received a Newbery Medal; Because of Winn-Dixie, which received a Newbery Honor; The Tiger Rising, a National Book Award Finalist; The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, winner of a Boston Globe-Horn Book Award; The Magician’s Elephant; and the best-selling Mercy Watson series. Kate DiCamillo lives in Minneapolis.
K. G. Campbell is the author-illustrator of Lester’s Dreadful Sweaters. He was born in Kenya, raised in Scotland, and now lives in southern California.
Reviews
This is a heartwarming story told with a masterful hand and complemented wonderfully by illustrations, sometimes in the form of comic book like panels. It is the sort of story that you really want to share with your children, you know the ones I’m talking about; they tug at your heart, they delight and they beg to be revisited over and over.
Bug in a Book
The language is a delight
Create a Kids Book
‘Flora & Ulysses is a truly unique book. DiCamillo’s narrative is gentle yet engaging and intelligent. Her characters, though oddballs, are immediately loveable and relatable. Campbell’s vivid, hilarious illustrations and comic strip inserts give this book an added dimension that does not come across at all gimicky, rather enriching the narrative, in particular the chapters that focus on Ulysses’ point of view. Both warm and laugh out loud funny, it is a treat from start to finish for children and adults alike. It comes as no surprise that this has won the 2014 Newbery Medal, and well deserved it is too. Flora and Ulysses are sure to become favourite characters in many households and their story one to be revisited time and again.
We Love This Book
Flora & Ulysses is a rollicking story of superheroes and of love, loneliness and hope.
Magpies Magazine
One of my very favourite children’s authors
Gleebooks
A gorgeous laugh-out-loud story filled with eccentric and endearing characters
Kinokuniya
I suggest that you read this hilarious and moving story.
ReadPlus
This is a heartwarming story told with a masterful hand and complemented wonderfully by illustrations
The Kylie Verse
This best-selling author has a knack for creating vulnerable characters you can’t help but like … DiCamillo has created some flawed and intriguing characters combined with a story that has something new to say about the power of friendship.”
The Saturday Age
a wonderfully warm and funny story of an unusual friendship between a girl and a squirrel
Readings Monthly
