Flora & Ulysses

 Shirley J.                 Juvenile Fiction                           a vacuum cleaner, a cynic, and a typing squirrel   

Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo   256 pages

When Mr. Tickman buys his wife a Ulysses Super Suction, Multi-Terrain 2000X vacuum cleaner and they are testing it out on multi-terrain, Mr. Tickman sucks up a squirrel!   Local 10 year old self-proclaimed cynic, Flora Belle Buckman sees what happens and rescues the poor thing.   Flora Belle is a little lax on friends and becomes attached to this new friend whom she dubs, Ulysses (after the vacuum cleaner).   Now throughout the world there are many reports of people undergoing near death experiences that once they return to this plane of existence find they have developed psychic abilities and after Ulysses harrowing escape from suction oblivion he and Flora find that he has flying squirrel abilities, appears to have gained super strength and who knows what other superpowers and oh yes, he starts typing out poetry.  A fun story for young and old maybe both at the same time.  Text and some of the storyline told in graphic novel illustrations.   I hear Disney has done the movie, too.   I highly recommend this for all ages from listeners (babies) on up.   A great read aloud story, too, I think.  Fun from beginning to end.