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Content snapshot
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Violence
Barely any
Despereaux faces the dungeon and some danger; a rat is threatening
Language
None
No profanity
Sexual Content
None
No sexual content
Substance Use
None
No substance use
Emotional Intensity
Barely any
Themes of loneliness and forgiveness handled tenderly
What this book is about
Despereaux Tilling is a tiny mouse born with enormous ears who falls in love with a human princess, reads books rather than eating them, and must rescue her from the dungeon. Kate DiCamillo weaves together four characters' stories — mouse, rat, girl, and princess — in a Newbery Medal-winning fairy tale about love, forgiveness, and impossible courage.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
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