The Puppets of Spelhorst

August 1, 2023
Grades 2-4 *Starred Review* What treasure box does DiCamillo have in store for young readers this time? One that contains five beautifully crafted puppets--a girl with violet eyes and a green cloak, a boy with a bow and arrows, a pompous king, a wise owl with real feathers, and a wolf with teeth that she delights in reminding everyone are "well and truly sharp"--oh, and a story or two. Upon the death of an old sea captain, Captain Spelhorst, his landlady sells his trunk of puppets--a curious thing for a childless old man to possess, to be sure--to the rag-and-bone man, who in turn sells it to a gentleman seeking a gift for his two nieces. The puppets have been charting their journey carefully, speculating what might be in store for them, knowing only that they are destined to be in a story together; the owner of the toy shop where they once lived told them so. Is it destiny, then, when the young new puppet owners decide to perform a play with their new toys? And, indeed, the play's the thing that pulls the seemingly disparate threads of the story into a marvelously constructed whole. 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.HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: This collaboration by two masters of their craft--a Newbery Medalist and a Governor General's Literary Award finalist--will prove irresistible.

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Starred review from August 14, 2023
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.

Starred review from September 1, 2023
Puppets yearn for greater things. In a toy store, a lonely old sea captain named Spelhorst spies a puppet who reminds him of a lost love. He tries to buy her but is told he must purchase the full set--a king, a wolf, an owl, and a boy--as these puppets "are in a story." The captain agrees, and that night, he mourns and writes a mysterious letter before dying in his sleep. Sold by the rag-and-bone man, the puppets eventually find their way to two sisters. While the older sister begins writing a play for the puppets, misadventures befall them; each engaging escapade is relevant to the story arc of the puppet in question. For instance, some of the wolf's teeth are yanked out by the younger sister, and after the maid tosses the puppet out, a fox absconds with her--the first devastates the wolf, as her teeth were her pride, yet traveling through the wild woods fulfills her deepest wish. Gentle tension builds as the puppets wonder if they will be reunited. After exploring their desires and identities, the recovered puppets put on the older sister's play, a story that, though she couldn't have known it, has beautiful symmetry with the puppets' adventures. Theatrical language prevents the parallels from becoming too heavy-handed. The vaguely Victorian characters present white in charming drawings that set the mood. A quiet, comforting fable of identity and belonging. (Fantasy. 7-10)

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Starred review from September 1, 2023
An aged sea captain dies, leaving a chest containing five puppets. After some trials and adventures, the puppets -- boy, girl, king, owl, and wolf -- end up in the grand home of a pair of sisters and fulfill their theatrical destiny by appearing in a play written by one of the girls. The frame story of this absorbing book of nested tales involves the sea captain and his history of unfulfilled love. Within that story is a chronicle of the puppets and the sisters, and within that narrative is the puppet play itself, which features a young man tragically cursed to a life of loneliness and despair. The story ends with a servant stealing the puppets and running away, presumably to fulfill her own destiny. 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. First in "a projected trio of novellas linked by place and mood." Sarah Ellis

(Copyright 2023 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

Starred review from November 24, 2023

Gr 2-5-Five puppets are displayed in a shop window-a king, wolf, girl, boy, and an owl-each with their own dream. The king just wants an opportunity to rule like kings do. The wolf has the fiercest and sharpest of teeth. The girl wishes to see more of the world. The boy, equipped with his bow and arrows, feels destined to do great things. And the owl, who is made of real feathers, dreams of flying. The puppets sit and wait for a story to begin, though as toys, they have very little agency in making those dreams come true. One day, an old sea captain takes the puppets home in a trunk. After writing for a long time, the sea captain cries himself to sleep and doesn't wake up in the morning. As the puppets find their way to a new home, a new story begins. The story unfolds, and through ups and downs, the one thing that's constant is that the puppets have one another. No matter what happens, their story is a shared one. This is the first title in the "Norendy Tales" trilogy from beloved author DiCamillo. The text is accompanied by delightful digitally rendered black-and-white pencil drawings by the wonderful Morstad. The illustrations bring the puppets to life and add to the magic and whimsy of the tale. With themes of love and loss, this chapter book reminds us there is light to be found in every darkness. VERDICT An enchanting and original fairy tale that will delight both young and old.-Elizabeth Blake

Copyright 2023 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2024
An aged sea captain dies, leaving a chest containing five puppets. After some trials and adventures, the puppets -- boy, girl, king, owl, and wolf -- end up in the grand home of a pair of sisters and fulfill their theatrical destiny by appearing in a play written by one of the girls. The frame story of this absorbing book of nested tales involves the sea captain and his history of unfulfilled love. Within that story is a chronicle of the puppets and the sisters, and within that narrative is the puppet play itself, which features a young man tragically cursed to a life of loneliness and despair. The story ends with a servant stealing the puppets and running away, presumably to fulfill her own destiny. Like many other stories featuring toys, from Hitty to The Mouse and His Child4, 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. First in "a projected trio of novellas linked by place and mood."

(Copyright 2024 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)