The Puppets of Spelhorst (The Norendy Tales #1)

This collaboration by two masters of their craft--a Newbery Medalist and a Governor General's Literary Award finalist--will prove irresistible.

A quiet, comforting fable of identity and belonging.

A quintet of puppets--"the king and the wolf and the girl/ and the boy and the owl"--ponder their dreams and yearnings in this quietly entrancing novella told in three acts. Following the death of their owner, a regretful old sea captain called Spelhorst, the five puppets, said to be "in a story together," are bundled into their trunk, sold to a musical rag-and-bone man, and eventually given to sisters Martha and Emma. After one of the sisters arranges the puppets on the mantel and begins working to include them in a play, each puppet undergoes a brief adventure that speaks to their nature: a king longing to rule, a wolf preoccupied with her own sharp teeth, a watchful girl with violet eyes, a boy longing to "do a great deed," and a portentous owl with real feathers. Newbery Medalist DiCamillo applies spare prose and witty conversation in fleshing out the puppets' desires as well as exploring the power of stories to promote community and offer a path to fulfillment. Occasional pencil illustrations from Morstad (Time Is a Flower) elegantly portray the figures, whose skin reflects the white of the page. Ages 7-10. Author's agent: Holly McGhee, Pippin Properties. Illustrator's agent: Emily Van Beek, Folio Jr./Folio Literary. (Oct.)

Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, LLC Used with permission.

This mood is perfectly captured in digitally rendered pencil drawings that add specificity (a Regency-esque setting in fictional Norendy), dignity, drama, and sheer beauty.

"Like many other stories featuring toys, from Hitty to The Mouse and His Child, there is a strain of melancholy here, with characters who long for autonomy but whose existence is dependent on the imaginations of others. This mood is perfectly captured in digitally rendered pencil drawings that add specificity (a Regency-esque setting in fictional Norendy), dignity, drama, and sheer beauty." —The Horn Book (starred review) 

"What treasure box does DiCamillo have in store for young readers this time? One that contains five beautifully crafted puppets. . . DiCamillo's storytelling is as effortless as always, and Morstad's frequent pencil illustrations elevate it further. This first of the Norendy Tales chapter-book series is guaranteed to enchant young readers. This collaboration by two masters of their craft—a Newbery Medalist and a Governor General's Literary Award finalist—will prove irresistible." —Booklist (starred review) 

"DiCamillo has a knack for capturing the real sentiments of children (and puppets), foibles and all, in fantastical settings and circumstances. . . . As in all DiCamillo's stories, the pages are peppered with smart, wry humor, balanced with moving moments of flawed humanity. An absolute gem. . . . Kate DiCamillo's dazzling first title in the Norendy Tales trilogy is brimming with wit, whimsy, and heart as it follows five puppets fulfilling their thrilling shared destiny." —Shelf Awareness 

"Puppets yearn for greater things. . . . A quiet, comforting fable of identity and belonging." —Kirkus Reviews 

"Wow. DiCamillo's The Puppets of Spelhorst is a master class in storytelling. As soon as I finished the book, I turned back to page one and started reading it again. Five stars." —Colby Sharp, educator and coauthor of The Commonsense Guide to Your Classroom Library 

"There's so much more to talk about with this book. The role of the girls who play with the puppets and how their very different impressions of them cause great changes. The role of the maid Jane Twiddum and what she wants. Heck, there's a whole undercurrent of feminism and the roles puppets and living women play within society, but I suppose I'll save that for someone else's thesis. The important thing to understand is that this is a story where it doesn't matter how physically passive you are. Your interior life, your hopes and dreams and goals, that's the thing that matters. That's what's going to make you into an active protagonist in the end, regardless of whether or not you have the ability to move. The Puppets of Spelhorst taught me that. Now imagine what it could teach your own children." —Betsy Bird, A Fuse #8 Production, School Library Journal