Kate DiCamillo Biography Quotes 21 Report mistakes

Early Life
Kate DiCamillo was born in 1964 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and spent her earliest years battling recurrent illness. Seeking a warmer climate for her health, her mother moved the family to central Florida, where DiCamillo grew up with her older brother, Curt DiCamillo, who would later become a noted architectural historian. The close bond with her mother and brother, along with the experience of being a keen observer from the sidelines during periods of illness, shaped her sensibility as a storyteller attuned to vulnerability, humor, and resilience.

Education and Move to the Midwest
Drawn to language from an early age, DiCamillo studied English literature and completed a B.A. at the University of Florida. In her late twenties she moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, a relocation that proved decisive for her career. There she worked for a book distributor, spending hours among shelves of childrens titles. Reading broadly in the field sharpened her sense of voice and audience and immersed her in the classics and contemporary works that would become a creative touchstone. Colleagues who loved childrens books, librarians who visited the warehouse, and booksellers she met through the job formed an informal community that encouraged her to write consistently and submit her work despite years of rejection.

First Books and Breakthrough
DiCamillo made an indelible debut with Because of Winn-Dixie (2000), published by Candlewick Press. Set in a small Florida town and sparked by the idea of a dog she wished she had, the novel quickly found readers and earned a Newbery Honor. It introduced themes that would recur in her work: loneliness met with friendship, the healing force of story, and the everyday grace in flawed people. The Tiger Rising (2001), a spare, lyrical novel, was named a National Book Award finalist and affirmed her gift for writing directly to childrens hearts without condescension.

The Tale of Despereaux and Major Acclaim
The Tale of Despereaux (2003), illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering, won the 2004 Newbery Medal and carried DiCamillos work to a global audience. A fable of light and darkness centered on an undersized, large-eared mouse and a princess, it melded high adventure with moral imagination. The book later inspired a feature film, further broadening its reach. She continued to write ambitiously across forms: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane (2006), with luminous art by Bagram Ibatoulline, followed the spiritual odyssey of a porcelain rabbit; The Magicians Elephant (2009) spun a tale of longing and wonder.

Expanding the World for Younger Readers
DiCamillo also created buoyant early-reader series that welcomed very young audiences. The Mercy Watson books, exuberantly illustrated by Chris Van Dusen, introduced a toast-loving pig and the comically exasperated neighbors of Deckawoo Drive, notably Eugenia and Baby Lincoln. That world later expanded into the Tales from Deckawoo Drive chapter books. With fellow writer Alison McGhee, she co-authored the Bink & Gollie series, brought to life by Tony Fucile; the first book received the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award, underscoring DiCamillos range from literary novels to read-aloud romps.

Flora & Ulysses and a Second Newbery
Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures (2013), with illustrations by K. G. Campbell, earned DiCamillo a second Newbery Medal in 2014, placing her among the few contemporary authors to receive the honor twice. The hybrid of prose and comics followed a self-proclaimed cynic named Flora and a poetry-writing squirrel named Ulysses, balancing absurdity with tenderness. A later screen adaptation introduced the story to new viewers. Throughout, her partnership with editors and the team at Candlewick Press provided a steady publishing home.

Themes, Craft, and Daily Practice
DiCamillos stories dwell on abandonment and belonging, fear and courage, and the redemptive power of kindness. She writes with a musical economy that respects young readers ability to hold complexity, often pairing sorrow with laughter. She has spoken about a steady writing discipline, building books two pages at a time, day after day. That habit, developed in Minneapolis coffee shops and at a simple desk at home, helped her persist through rejection and sustain a prolific career.

Ambassadorship and Advocacy
From 2014 to 2015, DiCamillo served as National Ambassador for Young Peoples Literature, a Library of Congress appointment that charged her with promoting reading across the United States. She visited schools and libraries, met teachers and booksellers, and emphasized that stories connect us across difference. Librarians, who had championed her books from the start, remained central partners in this work, helping her reach communities in every region.

Later Work and Continuing Influence
In the later 2010s she returned to her Florida roots with a loose trilogy: Raymie Nightingale (2016), Louisiana's Way Home (2018), and Beverly, Right Here (2019), closely observed novels about three girls whose intersecting lives confront loss, loyalty, and the making of a self. She continued to experiment with form and voice, including The Beatryce Prophecy (2021), a medieval tale illustrated by Sophie Blackall that blended fable, history, and hope.

Legacy
Across picture books, early readers, and novels, Kate DiCamillo has become one of the most widely read and beloved American authors for children. Her mother and her brother Curt remain touchstones in the personal story she often shares with readers; collaborators such as Alison McGhee, Chris Van Dusen, Timothy Basil Ering, K. G. Campbell, Bagram Ibatoulline, and Sophie Blackall have shaped the look and feel of her books; and the librarians, teachers, editors, and booksellers who first championed her work continue to carry it into new hands. Rooted in the warmth of Florida sunlight and tempered by Minneapolis winters, her body of work invites readers to hold fast to wonder, to look for the light, and to trust that friendship and story can change the course of a life.

Our collection contains 21 quotes who is written by Kate, under the main topics: Meaning of Life - Writing - Learning - Parenting - Book.