Some of the best stories written during the pandemic are just now surfacing. One example is an early-reader trilogy by renowned Minneapolis author Kate DiCamillo, 60, the first of which will be published April 30.
During the height of the Covid pandemic, Kate found herself with an anniversary edition of Frog and Toad, the beloved early-reader series published during the ’70s. She read and re-read it. She was struck by how much comfort it brought her and resolved to create the same effect in her own writing.
The Story of How Orris and Timble Came to Be
“I want to try to do something like this, something that makes me feel safe and loved,” she said. “So I started with an owl named Timble and a rat named Orris and I wondered how they became friends.”
Kate decided that storytelling would be a bridge to friendship between the unlikely duo, which she describes in the first book called Orris and Timble: The Beginning.
It worked.
Publishers Weekly praised the book, writing: “The spirits of Frog and Toad are alive and well in this moving and funny first volume…DiCamillo expertly wraps humor, kindness, the courage that purpose ignites and a love of story into a concise, welcoming package.”
The writing is almost like poetry in this sweet series – although Carmen Mok’s watercolor-and-pencil illustrations take the text to a new level. Kate loves them.
“They make the words work harder,” she said.
While young readers may know Kate for her lovable pig Mercy Watson, which is “more slapstick,” she said, this trilogy will soothe them as much as entertain them.
“This is more tender,” Kate said.
In a time when screens command endless attention, Kate believes storytelling is more needed than ever.
“It’s just part of who we are,” she said. “I think we need it to remind ourselves who we are. I think it’s more important now.”
She’s quick to praise the magic of reading aloud. “It makes a third space. Everybody comes into this metaphorical space of the story, including the person who’s reading it, and it’s just like you enter and you put down a lot. It lets you connect in ways you’re not even aware of.”
For all of Kate’s amusing stories, Orris and Timble is particularly well suited for reading aloud and delivering comfort and warmth.
Grab a copy of Orris and Timle at a local bookstore or click to buy on Amazon.
Maria Ries is a writer from Inver Grove Heights. She enjoys gardening, horseback riding, reading and swimming. She has three younger siblings and loves to play outside, especially in the woods. She is a fifth grader at Faithful Shepherd Catholic School.
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