Raymie Nightingale

Title: Raymie Nightingale

Rating: 4/5

Author: Kate DiCamillo

Pages: 263

Genre: Children’s

Synopsis:

Raymie has a plan. All she has to do is win the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition. If she does that, her picture will get in the paper, and if her picture gets in the paper her father will be so proud that he’ll come rushing back home to her instead of staying with the dental hygienist he ran off with. But before she can do that, she must learn how to twirl a baton.

At her lessons, she meets Louisiana and Beverly who have their own plans for the Little Miss Central Florida Tire competition. This could be much more complicated than Raymie thought.

My Reaction:

Kate DiCamillo has done it again! Seriously, I don’t need to write reviews for her books. Just go read them all. It was interesting to read this one in contrast to Flora and Ulysses: The illuminated Adventures since they both deal with similar family drama (divorce vs dad ran away with the dental hygienist), but both situations are dealt with differently and have a bit of a different outcome.

Something I enjoy about DiCamillo’s stories it that the characters are each uniquely themselves. You could describe them individually as if they were people you actually knew. The differences of these three girls don’t stop them from coming together and having adventures. In fact, it’s those very differences (and I suppose some found similarities) that get the adventure ball rolling in the first place.

It’s a simple yet thoughtful story that explores dreams, heartaches, and how things don’t always happen according to plan (which isn’t always a bad thing).

I thought Raymie’s thoughts were sometimes a little repetitive (which, let’s be honest, is probably how most of our minds work a good part of the time), but all in all, this was an enjoyable book and well worth the read.

Reader’s Guidance:

Nothing to fear as far as I’m concerned. There is an instance where someone passes away from natural causes, and a moment in a nursing home where a woman is crying out and it frightens the girls.

Similar Books:

I just discovered that there is a sequel book all about Louisiana! It's called Louisiana's Way Home, and it came out in October of last year. That one is probably worth a read also!

Next Book:

Next on our list is Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate. You may remember her as the author of The One and Only Ivan, which I absolutely loved! I'm hoping this book will be just as great!