I found this story by Kate DiCamillo while looking around on the Harper's Magazine site, inspired by Todd Mason's post at Sweet Freedom last week. I was allowed to read the story but could read nothing else, so I guess one free article is allowed per month. It was published in Harper's Magazine, July 2023. (I have now subscribed to Harper's Magazine.)
"The Castle of Rose Tellin"
Pen remembers an event from her childhood, when she and her brother Thomas go with their parents to Sanibel for a vacation at the beach. The year is 1968; her father is a famous judge, but he is also an abusive father. The family has come to Sanibel because her father needs to relax. Pen is six years old; her brother Thomas is three years older and goes out of his way to irritate his father. Which leads to some unhappy events.
It was a very good story. Uncomfortable, sad, and compelling.
This is the first piece I have read by Kate DiCamillo. Most of her writing is for children and she has won two Newbery Medals, in 2004 and 2014. I am assuming this story is aimed at adults. Her first published story for adults, “On a Winter’s Night”, appeared in the December 2022 issue of Harper’s Magazine.
22 comments:
That does sound very sad, Tracy. It sounds as though the setting is described effectively, and the characters, too. To me, that makes the plot all the more potent.
Today seems to be the day for abusive men. I have never heard of her before.
I also have not heard of DiCamillo, but I will seek this one out on the Harper's Magazine website. Thanks.
Hi Tracy,
Thanks for the link and I was able to read The Castle of Rose Tellin. It's the first thing I have read by Kate DeCamillo and I can see why she has won awards. This is a very well written story,sad and thought-provoking. I had plans to read a short story a day at the beginning of the year but that didn't work out but choosing a short story a week I should do because I am missing out on some very fine writers and stories.
I didn't know she wrote anything but children's books.
It was a very effective story, Margot, and the setting was very well done. And the characters felt vey real to me.
Patti, I was surprised when both of us were writing about stories involving abusive men. It is a topic that is hard to read about and I can handle it better in short fiction than novels or even films.
Kathy, I am glad you were able to read the story. It was a nice length for an online story.
Sometimes I have a problem even reading a short story once a week. I have to be in the mood for short stories. Earlier in the year you were discussing reading more poetry, essays, and short stories at your blog. Now that I will be getting Harper's Magazine, I may see more essays and poetry that I can sample.
Casual Debris, I was very pleased with the Harper's Magazine website and am eager to explore more stories, articles, and essays there.
I had heard of DeCamillo before, but recently a friend who writes children's books was very enthusiastic about her writing, so I had been looking into what she had written.
Lark, I have never read any of DiCamillo's children's books, but I recently purchased a copy of The Tale of Despereaux when I saw a copy at Daedalus. That was one of her books that got the Newbery Medal.
Sounds like a very character-driven and emotional story with a lot packed into it. I'm not familiar with her at all, but I plan to learn more. Sounds like she's written quite a bit of adult material.
Sam, there is only one of her books that I know much about at all, and that is Because of Winn-Dixie. Winn-Dixie is a dog (I thought it was a grocery store because they have those in Alabama) and the protagonist is a 10-year-old girl, in Florida. I hope to read that one sometime. I was surprised to learn that it was her first book.
I plan to look for some of her books at the book sale but the children's books section get picked over very quickly and I have never had any luck there.
Interesting. I recently read an interview with a writer I liked who recommended Kate DiCamillo. Can't remember who it was though!
Vintage Reading, I don't usually read children's books but I plan to read some that she wrote and see what I think. The short story for adults at Harper's Magazine was very good.
I've read one of Kate Dicamillo, about a stuffed rabbit maybe? It was charming and, by the sound of it, not much like this short story.
I don't think I had even heard of the author before this. This story seems to pack an emotional punch. I will try to access it.
Cath, I have one of her children's books on order now, and hope to find more at the book sale. I do want to sample her writing for younger ages.
Neeru, I had heard of DiCamillo but did not realize she had written so many children's books. I was surprised to see a story by her at Harper's Magazine. I hope you are able to access the story.
It might not be a matter of timing for Neeru, who is in India, rather than international access...I hope she can see it too.
DeCamillo I had heard of, and probably because of the WINN-DIXIE film adaptation as well as probably seeing her name on Newbery lists/announcements (the dog, as I recall, is named for the supermarkets, but I didn't see more than a piece of it, and haven't read the novel...I was scouring the libraries as a child for Newbery winners and shortlisters, some of the latter including some of my favorite books, most obviously THE LONER by Ester Weir). Glad you found that on the HARPER'S site...might even be only her second adult-audience short story to be published, but we should Go Look. Glad you subbed to the magazine...it's been a while since I have, but just might again.
Casual Debris is the blog of Frank Babics, btw.
I didn't know she had written anything for adults. I have read a few of her books and enjoyed them although I prefer books written for a slightly older audience. She is a big Betsy-Tacy fan and was very friendly and down-to-earth when I met her once at a conference in Florida.
This is the last book of hers I read: https://perfectretort.blogspot.com/2021/12/the-beatryce-prophecy-by-kate-dicamillo.html I liked it but would recommend Because of Winn-Dixie which is her best known.
Todd, What I read at Harper's made it sound like the two there were DiCamillo's only adult short stories, but I haven't found anything anywhere to confirm or deny that.
Thanks for the info about Frank Babics. I had looked on his blog and not found anything to identify him by name.
Constance, it was a surprise to me also to see a short shory by DiCamillo at Harper's. I did think that what she has written for children was at a lower age range than I would like, but I still want to try something she has written. And we do own a small collection of illustrated children's books, although we don't add new ones very often. It must have been at your blog that I read that she was a Betsy-Tacy fan.
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