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The Hotel Balzaar
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
9 posts | 4 read | 2 to read
In a wise and magical follow-up to The Puppets of Spelhorst, Kate DiCamillo revisits the land of Norendy, where tales swirl within talesand every moment is a story in the making. At the Hotel Balzaar, Martas mother rises before the sun, puts on her uniform, and instructs Marta to roam as she will but quietly, invisiblylike a little mouse. While her mother cleans rooms, Marta slips down the back staircase to the grand lobby to chat with the bellman, study the painting of an angels wing over the fireplace, and watch a cat chase a mouse around the face of the grandfather clock, all the while dreaming of the return of her soldier father, who has gone missing. One day, a mysterious countess with a parrot checks in, promising a storyin fact, seven stories in all, each to be told in its proper order. As the stories unfold, Marta begins to wonder: could the secret to her fathers disappearance lie in the countesss tales? Book two in a trio of novellas bound by place and moodwith elegant line art by Jlia SardThe Hotel Balzaar masterfully juggles yearning and belief, shining light into every dark corner.
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Nebklvr
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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This was a good old-fashioned type of children's story. As a read aloud it would be fantastic! The pace was a bit slow and the stories felt a bit disjointed for the independent reader.

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LaurenAsh
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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Okay, when is the next Norendy Tale going to be available?! My kids and I whip through these magical books by the incomparable Kate DiCamillo. We love them so.

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monalyisha
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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I‘m not convinced the Norendy Tales are for children nor am I unconvinced. I could see them being just as soon discarded for being confusing (and sad) as I could see them being treasured despite the confusion (and perhaps because they are a little melancholy). Regardless, they are for me. This installment reminds me of Leonard Cohen‘s Anthem: “Ring the bells that still can ring /Forget your perfect offering/ There is a crack…👇🏻

monalyisha …a crack in everything / That‘s how the light gets in.” In one of the seven stories that The Countess tells Marta, a talking fox blesses a young girl for her kindness by gifting her with the ability “to see a dazzling light behind every common thing,” which is, of course, THE gift. ✨ 2w
Clare-Dragonfly I think kids can handle confusing stories better than adults. So much is confusing when you‘re a kid that you just let it wash over you! 2w
monalyisha @Clare-Dragonfly Sometimes! 2w
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BarbaraJean
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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“It takes no courage at all to doubt, Marta,” she said. “And we are not beyond rescue. We are never beyond rescue.”

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BarbaraJean
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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“There are days,” said the countess as she put on a hat that featured a yellow bird, “when the soul can be rescued from despair by the right hat. Although some days, of course the soul seems beyond rescue, and then there is nothing to do except to be patient and wait for the light to return, with or without a hat upon your head.”

This, thought Marta, is one of those days.

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BarbaraJean
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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Pay attention, my love. Note everything for me. Tell me where you see the light seep through.

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BarbaraJean
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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Pickpick

I love Kate DiCamillo so, so much. This is another book I want to hug.

Marta‘s mother is a maid at the Hotel Balzaar, and Marta must spend her days staying quiet and invisible, certainly not bothering any of the hotels‘ guests. Until a countess and her parrot arrive and the countess singles Marta out to tell her a series of stories—each to be told in its proper order, at the proper time. ⤵️

BarbaraJean (Cont‘d) The stories frustrate Marta‘s expectations as she struggles with her own sadness and worries over her father, who is missing. I loved watching the way Marta is transformed as the stories gradually reveal their truths. Such a wonderful exploration of the power of stories and human connection. 1mo
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BarbaraJean
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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“You are so concerned with how things end! It is wearisome, this obsession of yours. Don‘t you understand that nothing ever truly ends?”

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BarbaraJean
The Hotel Balzaar | Kate DiCamillo
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“…life will never allow itself to be straightened, and it will drive you mad, a little, if you keep trying to straighten it. …Life always wins. Life and its crooked lines will always win.”