Ooo! The first book in a new series written by Kate Dicamillo and illustrated by Chris VanDusen will be released August 23rd (2005). A Publisher's Weekly review via Barnes & Noble has this to say about the first of the books, Mercy Watson to the Rescue:
"Newbery Medalist DiCamillo (The Tale of Despereaux) once again displays her versatility with this jaunty debut to an early chapter-book series. The tale stars Mercy, a pig with personality a-plenty-and a penchant for "hot toast with a great deal of butter on it." When Mr. and Mrs. Watson tuck Mercy into bed at night and switch off the light, their pet no longer feels "warm and buttery-toasty inside" and decides "she would be much happier if she wasn't sleeping alone." So she climbs into the Watsons' bed and dreams of hot buttered toast, until the overloaded bed begins to fall through the floor. Mercy's obsession prompts her to hop off the bed-her devoted owners convinced that she's gone to summon the fire department. Alas, the peckish porcine's single-minded pursuit leads her to the kind next-door neighbor and ultimately does prompt a call to the fire department-but not before a series of comical twists [...]"
I read The Tale of Despereaux a few months ago and fell head over heels in love with the book just a few pages in, so I'm looking forward to meeting DiCamillo's first character targeted for a younger audience. I'm loving the cover illustration, too. (Head over to Amazon.com for a little preview of Chapter One, plus the first illustration that goes with it.)
