Kate DiCamillo

Rescuing a squirrel after an accident involving a vacuum cleaner, comic-reading cynic Flora Belle Buckman is astonished when the squirrel, Ulysses, demonstrates astonishing powers of strength and flight after being revived. By the Newbery Medal-winning author of The Tale of Despereaux.

The Illuminated Adventures

Flora & Ulysses

Rescuing a squirrel after an accident involving a vacuum cleaner, comic-reading cynic Flora Belle Buckman is astonished when the squirrel, Ulysses, demonstrates astonishing powers of strength and flight after being revived. Novel interspersed with comic-style graphic sequences and full-page illustrations, all rendered in black-and-white.

Flora and Ulysses

It's quirky, it's light, it's heartwarming. It's about adventure and magic. It teaches kindness and sticking up to values, and guess who teaches that: a squirrel.

Naomi P

It's quirky, it's light, it's heartwarming. It's about adventure and magic. It teaches kindness and sticking up to values, and guess who teaches that: a squirrel.




Sarah Sammis

Laura Mauler

This falls between a 3.5 and 4 on the star scale. 

Superpowers via near-death experience with a vacuum cleaner? Sure, why not! If superpowers were only to be had by likely methods then nobody would wear their safety glasses during chem lab. And one of the superpowers is writing poetry? HELL YES! Because I truly think that writing a beautiful or moving piece of poetry is akin to a superpower.

I didn't like the character of William Spiver at all, but the delightful Mrs. Tickham and Dr. Meescham more than made up for him.

Melissa Palmer

Book #32 Read in 2014
Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo

This was a cute book about Flora, a somewhat odd child, and Ulysses, a flying squirrel who is thought of by Flora as being a superhero after he survives being vacuumed. Flora is connected in Ulysses and strides to save him from her mother, who wants to kill Ulysses. This book has cute illustrations in it and would be a good read aloud. There was a lot of humor in this book.

http://melissasbookpicks.blogspot.com

Ashley Wendt

3.5
EDIT: We just watched the movie, and I have to say, it may be one of the more enjoyable adaptations. They added so much more depth and relatability to the story! Highly recommend for a family movie night!

I hadn’t intended on reading this. I was looking for a last minute book talk for some of the SPED students and I had remembered seeing the preview for the Disney+ movie. So, I pulled this from our shelves and started reading the first chapter the way back to my desk. I was immediately drawn into the story. It was absolutely charming, I enjoyed the prose, the message of love and loving people in all their strangeness was perfect; the idea that superheroes come in all forms and they can save us in ways we didn’t know we needed saving. The thing that felt off was the relationship building. This whole story takes place over 2-3 days and yet some of the feelings manifested in ways that would take more time to build and feel palpable.

Ana Cob

I wasn't particularly enjoying it while reading it but after a while, I keep thinking about this book and enjoying the memories. I read the first few chapters to some students and they absolutely loved it. Will re-read!

Karin 

Jeni Enjaian

This adorable book captivated me from the first moment I picked it up. DiCamillo's narrative style weaves fantasy with heart-warming tropes in such a perfect way that the reader cannot help but fall in love with all of the characters.

I highly recommend this book to readers of all ages.

Jessica Nottingham

I'll be honest, and let you know that I tried once before to read Flora & Ulysses. Back when it first came out, actually. Perhaps it was because I was trying to read it on my Kindle, or perhaps it wasn't quite what I needed at the time, but I wasn't able to finish.
 
However, this read-through was actually rather delightful! I love Kate DiCamillo's writing for many reasons, but the main one is that it is always so deliciously whimsical. She writes about brave mice, strong friendships, and the goodness that hides within everyone. No matter who her stories focus on, they have a message worth reading. Flora & Ulysses is no exception to that rule, and I think young readers will love it.
 
Flora Belle is a sweet character. A self-proclaimed cynic, she has a habit of looking at the world as literally as possible. Only through her love of comics does that piece of her that might believe in the impossible peek through. That is, until Ulysses appears. An odd pair, this girl and her squirrel. Yet they are one that is undeniably adorable. I loved the idea that Flora's best self was brought to light when she met her superhero squirrel. Plus I loved Ulysses himself to the moon and back!
 
Now you're probably wondering why I gave this book a three star rating. To be honest, the biggest flaw I found in Flora & Ulysses was the fact that it tried to do so much at once. This isn't just a story about a girl and her friend. It's about a slightly broken family. About finding your best self. About looking for friends in the most unexpected places. Even about forgiveness. While I think that's all admirable, it created a bit of a jumbled story line. I wanted so much to just focus on the relationship between Flora and Ulysses.
 
Still, I think this is a story that young readers will love. The illustrations enhance the text beautifully, and overall this is just a fun story. It would be wonderful as a read-aloud between parents and their little ones.

Paula Plaza Ponte 

Brianna

Winner of the 2014 Newbery Medal Holy unanticipated occurrences! A cynic meets an unlikely superhero in a genre-breaking new 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 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 new format — a novel interspersed with comic-style graphic sequences and full-page illustrations, all rendered in black-and-white by up-and-coming artist K. G. Campbell.

Flora & Ulysses The Illuminated Adventures

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