Saturday, July 11, 2020

Stella Endicott and the Anthing-Is-Possible Poem by Kate DiCamillo


Most kids today are familiar with Mercy the pig (shown on the cover). While this installment from Kate DiCamillo does include the house trained hog, she plays a minor part in the story.  Stella is in 2nd grade and has to sit by the most annoying, know-it-all boy in the class, Horace. At least she has a teacher that she adores.

When that beloved teacher assigns a project to write a poem with a metaphor, Stella snuggles up to her favorite pig for inspiration. She felt so proud of her poem, until she foolishly lets Horace read her poem and one hum dinger of an argument ensues which then leads to {horror of horrors} a trip to the principal's office. But there is still adventures to be had between their classroom and office and in the end, Stella and Horace gain a greater appreciation for their differences.

The illustrations are marvelous and help illustrate the action so well. Kids will enjoy seeing the representation of each character in the story (including Mercy as well!). Readers will learn a bit about poetry and metaphors so this would make an excellent read for elementary classrooms. Readers will also learn a fair amount of vocabulary (helpfully defined by Horace within the story), and also learn some valuable lessons about friendship. 

I highly recommend not only this book by Kate DiCamillo, but all the other titles about Mercy Watson.  DiCamillo's books are destined to be childhood classics. 

Disclaimer: I received a free digital copy of Stella Endicott and the Anything-Is-Possible Poem from NetGalley for the purpose of review. No other compensation was received.

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