Orris and Timble: The Beginning

K-Gr 2–From the celebrated DiCamillo comes a deceptively simple tale of an emerging friendship between a rat and an owl. Orris, a streetwise rat, has “lived in the dangerous world for a long time.” Now, he lives alone in the peaceful solitude of an abandoned barn with his nest of treasures—until his peace is interrupted by a screeching owl. Young Timble has flown into the barn and landed on a mouse trap. Orris, knowing that owls eat rats, is determined to stay out of it. But his cozy nest loses its sheen as he listens to the owl struggle. Orris’s attempt to “make the good and noble choice” and help Timble results in an odd new friendship. Mok’s gentle illustrations fill in the story in a lovely way, helping young readers read between the lines of the fairly straightforward text. She makes use of light and shadow to highlight a simultaneous coziness and loneliness of the abandoned barn, zooming in and out at just the right moments. For instance, when Orris creeps out to see the trapped owl, Mok zooms in on the despondent Timble, eyes closed, body slouched. After Timble then begs for help, and Orris debates whether to give it, the text notes, “There was a great silence in the barn.” Mok’s illustration zooms out to show how small the animals are in the great, empty space.