2 Books Instead of 1

The Magician's Elephant by Kate DiCamillo

Hardcover: 208 pages
Publisher: Candlewick; 1 edition (September 8, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0763644102

From Kirkus Reviews
Ten-year-old Peter Augustus Duchene goes to the market for fish and bread but spends it at the fortuneteller's tent instead. Seeking his long-lost sister, Peter is told, "You must follow the elephant. She will lead you there." And that very night at the Bliffenendorf Opera House, a magician's spell goes awry, conjuring an elephant that crashes through the ceiling and lands on Madam Bettine LaVaughn. Reading like a fable told long ago, with rich language that begs to be read aloud, this is a magical story about hope and love, loss and home, and of questioning the world versus accepting it as it is. Brilliant imagery juxtaposes "glowering and resentful" gargoyles and snow, stars and the glowing earth, and Tanaka's illustrations (not all seen) bring to life the city and characters from "the end of the century before last." A quieter volume than The Tale of Despereaux (2003) and The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane (2006), this has an equal power to haunt readers long past the final page.

I took a quick break from the chunkster books I have been reading lately and read Kate DiCamillo's new book The Magician's Elephant.

Kate is a marvelous young persons writer.  I have really loved her books of Tale of Despereaux and the Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.  It seems Kate also always gets good artists to illustrate her books and this one is no different.

This one was a cute read but I will admit to liking her longer books.. this is much like a short story and if you know me at all.. I am not a lover of short stories...so in truth I would have loved this little book to be longer and the characters even more flushed out.  But if you ask me if I am disappointed in the book I will say no.  Kate DiCamillo is just too fine a writer to get disappointed at what she write.  If dreams could really come true you'd believe it reading one of Kate's books.

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SIMON'S CAT

Simons Cat written by Simon Tofield

Paperback: 240 pages
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing (September 24, 2009)
ISBN-10: 0446560065

Product Description
Simon Tofield's animations have taken YouTube by storm. Now, the feline Internet phenomenon makes his way onto the page in this first-ever book based on the popular animated series. SIMON'S CAT depicts and exaggerates the hilarious relationship between a man and his cat. The daily escapades of this adorable pet, which always involve demanding more food, and his exasperated but doting owner come to life through Tofield's charming and hilarious illustrations.

There's nothing I can really say.. me and my cat  have a thing for Simon's Cat!...