So now I'm all caught up with Kate DiCamillo's novels and I have to say that The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane is probably my favorite. It's a beautiful story and like all of her books, it's presented beautifully with amazing illustrations by Bagram Ibatoulline.
Edward Tulane is a porcelain rabbit doll that was specially commissioned by Abilene Tulane's grandmother. He's a wonderful doll that has real rabbit fur ears, a gold pocket watch and a whole wardrobe of clothes. Edward admires himself and is quite conceited thinking only of himself. He is loved by Abilene but does not reciprocate that love.
When Abilene's family goes on a cruise Edward is tossed overboard and falls to the bottom of the ocean where he experiences his first emotion aside from selfishness - fear. After spending nearly a year on the ocean floor he is swept into the nets of a fisherman which eventually leads him into the unlikely arms of an elderly woman where he begins to learn the emotion of love. From there, Edward continues his miraculous journey, discovering what love is and learning to cherish the meaning and fragility of human relationships.
Another stellar work by DiCamillo! I'm so happy to have this book in my collection. What I love about DiCamillo's work is that they speak to such a wide audience. There's something in each of her books for everyone and I truly enjoyed this one.
Update: Here are a couple of other great reviews of this book. Becky has a very thorough review that I enjoyed reading, and Carl also has a review of this one that I read some time ago that made me instantly want to pick this one up. I'm glad I finally did!
