The Story of Diva and Flea

The Story of Diva and Flea. Mo Willems. Illustrated by Tony DiTerlizzi. 2015. Disney-Hyperion. 80 pages. [Source: Library]

First sentence: This is Diva's story. For as long as she could remember, Diva lived at 11 avenue Le Play in Paris, France.

Premise/plot: The Story of Diva and Flea is an early chapter book. Diva is a small dog; Flea is a large cat, a flaneur. You might think these two could never be friends--best friends--because they are so very different from one another. Diva stays in her apartment, or in the courtyard of the apartment building; she's frightened of people--of stomping feet. Flea, well, Flea is a loner, a bit mistrustful of humans, who seem to always be waving brooms at him. Every single day is an adventure for this wanderer. He never knows when his next meal will be, or what it will be, but oh the sights he's seen. Yet these two do become friends, and they bring out the best in one another...

My thoughts: The Story of Diva and Flea is giddy-making. I loved, loved, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED it. I loved everything about it. I loved the setting--Paris, France. I loved the characters--Diva and Flea. I loved the premise: two animals becoming the best of friends. I loved how it reminded me of some of my favorite Disney movies (Lady & The Tramp and The Aristocats). I loved the illustrations. I loved the writing. For example,

Flea did not even have a fixed name. Some people called him "Puss" or "Midnight" or "Richard," but he didn't care too much about what people called him. He liked the name "Flea." He thought it was a funny name because he was a large cat, and a flea is a small animal. Also, he may or may not have had fleas.

I expected to love it because it is Mo Willems. But I didn't expect to love it so very, very much!!!

© 2015 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews