''The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane'' is a 2006

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itself ...

Kate DiCamillo Katrina Elizabeth DiCamillo (born March 25, 1964) is an American children's fiction author. She has published over 25 novels, including '' Because of Winn-Dixie'', ''The Tiger Rising'', ''The Tale of Despereaux'', ''The Miraculous Journey ...

and illustrated by Bagram Ibatoulline. Following the life of a

china China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

rabbit Rabbits, also known as bunnies or bunny rabbits, are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also contains the hares) of the order Lagomorpha (which also contains the pikas). ''Oryctolagus cuniculus'' includes the European rabbit sp ...

, the book won the 2006

Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- most p ...

in Fiction category.

Plot

Edward Tulane is a china rabbit given to a ten-year-old girl named Abilene by her grandmother in the 1930s. He enjoys a pleasant but vain life with his young mistress, who treats him with the utmost love and respect until an unfortunate incident finds him falling overboard while vacationing on the '' Queen Mary''. Edward spends 297 days on the ocean floor, until a storm frees him from the seabed and a passing

fisherman A fisher or fisherman is someone who captures fish and other animals from a body of water, or gathers shellfish. Worldwide, there are about 38 million commercial and subsistence fishers and fish farmers. Fishers may be professional or rec ...

and his buddy pull him from their fishing net. The man takes him home to his wife where he is referred to as female and wears dresses. Edward is passed from hand to hand of a succession of life-altering characters, such as a

hobo A hobo is a migrant worker in the United States. Hoboes, tramps and bums are generally regarded as related, but distinct: a hobo travels and is willing to work; a tramp travels, but avoids work if possible; and a bum neither travels nor works. ...

and his dog and a four-year-old girl with

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, ...

and her brother. Edward's journeys not only take him far from home, but even farther from the selfish

he once was. Eventually, Edward is cruelly broken against a counter top edge, repaired and then offered for sale in a

doll A doll is a model typically of a human or humanoid character, often used as a toy for children. Dolls have also been used in traditional religious rituals throughout the world. Traditional dolls made of materials such as clay and wood are foun ...

store for several years. He is finally bought by Abilene, his original mistress, now married with a daughter of her own.

Themes

The novel contains several themes involving loss and recovery, kindness and compassion, and the journey to self-discovery. The main theme can be summarized by a quote from the book: "If you have no intention of loving or being loved, then the whole journey is pointless." The novel has often been compared to

Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen ( , ; 2 April 1805 – 4 August 1875) was a Danish author. Although a prolific writer of plays, travelogues, novels, and poems, he is best remembered for his literary fairy tales. Andersen's fairy tales, consist ...

's work, particularly " The Steadfast Tin Soldier".

Awards, nominations, and recognition

''The Miraculous Journey'' won the 2006

Boston Globe–Horn Book Award The Boston Globe–Horn Book Awards are a set of American literary awards conferred by ''The Boston Globe'' and ''The Horn Book Magazine'' annually from 1967. One book is recognized in each of four categories: Fiction and Poetry, Nonfiction, and P ...

for children's fiction and a

Parents' Choice Award The Parents' Choice Award was an award presented by the non-profit Parents' Choice Foundation to recognize "the very best products for children of different ages and backgrounds, and of varied skill and interest levels." It was considered a "prest ...

for Spring 2006 fiction. It was a Quill Awards finalist in the children's chapter book category. In 2007 the U.S.

National Education Association The National Education Association (NEA) is the largest labor union in the United States. It represents public school teachers and other support personnel, faculty and staffers at colleges and universities, retired educators, and college stud ...

named it one of "Teachers' Top 100 Books for Children" based on an online poll. In 2012 it was ranked number 59 among all-time children's novels in a survey published by ''

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, with ...

'' – the third of three books by DiCamillo in the Top 100.

Adaptations

On October 30, 2013,

Robert Zemeckis Robert Lee Zemeckis (born May 14, 1952) is an American filmmaker. He first came to public attention as the director of the action-adventure romantic comedy '' Romancing the Stone'' (1984), the science-fiction comedy '' Back to the Future'' film ...

was set to direct and produce the film adaptation of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane for

New Line Cinema New Line Cinema is an American film production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery and is a film label of Warner Bros. It was founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye as an independent film distribution company; later becoming a film studio after ...

with Jeff Stockwell writing the script. The Minnesota Opera commissioned 'Edward Tulane', with Paola Prestini composing the music for the new opera. 'Edward Tulane' was scheduled to run at the Ordway Center for Performing Arts from Saturday, March 21 through Sunday, March 29, 2020, but the run was postponed due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. Synchronicity Theatre in Atlanta produced the stage production in April 2018, and again in December 2022.

In popular culture

The book was featured in ''

My Love from the Star ''My Love from the Star'' () is a South Korean fantasy romantic comedy television series written by Park Ji-eun and directed by Jang Tae-yoo. Produced by Choi Moon-suk and Moon Bo-mi, it stars Jun Ji-hyun, Kim Soo-hyun, Park Hae-jin, Yoo In- ...

'', a 2014

Korean drama Korean dramas (; RR: ''Han-guk deurama''), more popularly known as K-dramas, are television series in the Korean language, made in South Korea. They are popular worldwide, especially in Asia, partially due to the spread of Korean popular cultu ...

about an alien living on Earth for 400 years who falls in love with a popular actress. This propelled the novel to the top of the bestseller lists in major Korean bookstores as the alien repeatedly quotes from it throughout the series. The book was also quoted at a memorial service for

Lil Peep Gustav Elijah Åhr (November 1, 1996 – November 15, 2017), known professionally as Lil Peep, was an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He was a member of the emo rap collective GothBoiClique. Helping pioneer an emo revival-style of ...

by his mother.

Notes

External links

Edward Tulane
publisher's website {{DEFAULTSORT:Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, The 2006 American novels American young adult novels Books about rabbits and hares Candlewick Press books Novels adapted into operas Sentient toys in fiction