The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane - TeachersFirst Reading Trek -Updated
This map is intended to help students better understand the places and content mentioned in the text.

Author's Information

Philadelphia, PA
Katrina "Kate" Elizabeth DiCamillo was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on, March 25, 1964. She has an older brother, Curt. She suffered from chronic pneumonia each winter. Philadelphia is a large, metropolitan city on the Delaware River as seen in the panoramic first image. The second image shows the downtown area in 1969. The third image shows an eatery that began in 1966 and is still serving those same Philly Cheesesteak sandwiches. The fourth image shows the Liberty Bell. (Image Credit: pixabay.com and https://www.loc.gov/item/2019636800.)

Clermont, FL
Kate, her older brother, and their mother moved to a warmer climate when she was five years old. Kate's health did improve. These images show the business area, natural lake area, and oceanfront areas. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)

Cooper Memorial Library
Kate DiCamillo spent a great deal of time here as a child. She chose this special location to receive her first Newbery Medal. Visit https://ericadiazteam.com/tag/cooper-memorial-library/ to see a picture of the library.

Clermont Elementary School (Former Location)
DiCamillo attended Clermont Elementary, which has since been renamed.

Rollins College
Kate attended Rollins College for a brief time before transferring. Take a virtual tour at https://www.rollins.edu/.

University of Florida
Kate DiCamillo earned a B.A. in English at the  University of Florida in Gainsville, Florida, in 1987. The first image shows how the campus sprawls throughout the city,  and the second image shows  some of the city near the campus. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)

Circus World (Former Location)
Circus World was a circus-themed amusement park with rides and circus attractions. Visitors could even try tight rope walking and the flying trapeze. Visit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2lbcmfYtcUE and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nGqS7Q8HWYw to learn more about the park and what brought its demise.

Spaceship Earth
After graduation, Kate worked several jobs, such as here at Disney's Epcot Center. The first image shows the iconic Spaceship Earth attraction-a ride inside the symbolic geodesic sphere. The second image shows a vintage photo of a moon landing spacecraft on display. Enjoy a virtual ride at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oFSVDCn7Qfo. (Photo Credit: pixabay.com and unsplash.com.)

Minneapolis, MN
Kate DiCamillo moved to Minneapolis in 1994; she worked in a book warehouse. It was another nine or so years before she started writing. Minnesota was home to the two of America's leading flour mills-the Pillsbury Mill is pictured in the first image; this mill had once been the largest flour mill in the world and is now repurposed as artist lofts preserving the historic building. The second image shows the drive heading into the city. The third image shows one of the many snowy days that made Kate homesick for Florida, as she has shared in many interviews. The fourth image shows the  Mississippi River. Minneapolis is also home several professional sports teams, such as the Twins, whose stadium is featured in the fifth image. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com, pixabay.com, and unsplash.com.)

Illustrator's Information

Omsk, Russia
Bagram Ibatoulline was born in Omsk, Russia. When he was four years old, he began sculpting and then drawing when he was six years old. (Image Credit: pixabay.com.)

Children's Art School №1 them. Sanin
Based on the advice of his parents, Bagram attended the Children's Art School of Omsk when he was ten years old; he was very interested in sculpting. These two images show two techniques of sculpting clay. There he learned art history, the use of various materials, and techniques. (Image Credit: pixabay.com.)

Kazan Art School (Kazanskoye Khudozhestvennoye Uchilishche Im. N.i. Feshina)
Mr. Ibatoulline came here when he was 15 years old and studied for four years, graduating with honors. The artist shared that this was a time of intense art training. (Image credit: unsplash.com.)

Moscow State Academic Art Institute
Bagram Ibaoulline studied here for five years before graduating. The first two images offer a view of Moscow. The third image shows intricately hand-painted stacking dolls. Visit the institute at http://surikov-vuz.com/. He then moved to the United States to better his artistic endeavors. (Photo Credit: pixabay.com.)

Gouldsboro, PA
Mr. Ibatoulline lived in Gouldsboro in 2014. This community is located on some large ponds and lakes in the Pocono Mountains. These images show the picturesque mountains. (Image Credit: unsplash.com.)

Chichester, NY
Mr. Ibatoulline lives in Chichester currently; this community is referred to as a hamlet, which is a very small town located in the Catskills Mountains. He illustrates children's books using a wide variety of techniques, including acrylic-gouache, watercolor, ink, bleaching, and more as seen in this image. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)

Publisher's Information

Candlewick Press
Candlewick Press is an independent publisher of children's books and a part of Walker Books Group. Candlewick Press published The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane in 2006. Candlewick Press is located in Cambridge, Massachusetts. (Image Credit: unsplash.com.)

Edward Tulane's Places

France
France was the homeland of Abilene's grandmother; the first image shows the streets of a village in the southern region of France. Both France and Germany were the origins of china and bisque (unglazed china) dolls; the second image shows German doll makers. These dolls were cast/molded from porcelain and fired in a kiln, as seen in the third image. Later the doll parts would be painted by master craftsmen, and their bodies would be joined together in varied ways. The fourth and fifth images show these parts and one joining technique.  The process to create just one china doll could take a significant amount of time as each porcelain body part would be poured into a mold, fired in a kiln, removed from the mold, gently sanded, painted and fired again, and usually glazed before being assembled into the doll; all of this attributed to the price of the doll. These dolls were not considered toys as the dolls of today are viewed; it would have been a gift, often for an adult. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com, unsplash.com, and https://www.loc.gov/item/2014702815/.)

Home of the Tulane Family
The Tulane family most likely lived in the New York City area, probably the Manhattan borough. The time frame of the story was in the mid to later 1930's. While most of the United States was enduring the Great Depression, wealthy families could still enjoy luxury homes, travel, and a housekeeper. The first two images show two areas of New York City in the Manhattan borough that may have been the setting for the Tulane Family home. The third image is of a collection of pocket watches from a shop also in the Manhattan area. (Image Credit: unsplash.com.)

Manhattan Cruise Terminal
The Manhattan Cruise Terminal is where passengers of cruise ships would embark and disembark. The first image shows the Queen Mary entering New York Harbor on her maiden voyage. The second image shows the luggage that passengers would have taken with them on their sail across the Atlantic; the stickers help identify where luggage had traveled. (Image Credit: unsplash.com.)

Queen Mary Sailing Route
This is the approximate sailing route of the Queen Mary in the 1930s.

Life on the Queen Mary
Learn more about life aboard the Queen Mary and her role during World War II and her 1001 Atlantic Ocean crossings at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g2l1OwAxqEs.

London
Visiting London in the 1930s was somewhat limited for most as the Great Depression was still devastating not only the United States but much of the world as well. Those who could afford to travel may have wanted to visit the Tower of London, as seen in the first image; it is regarded as the most secure castle in the world. In 1937 a new king and queen were crowned with such similar to that seen in the second image. Another attraction would have been the Wimbledon Tennis Tournament played yearly in early summer on grass courts; the third image shows the type of rackets used during that time. A sight all visitors see in their visit to London is the famous Tower Bridge on the Thames River, seen in the fourth image-it looks the same as it did when it opened in 1894, short of a fresh coat of paint. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)

Ocean Bottom
The Atlantic Ocean Continental Shelf extends up to 110 miles off New York's coast, at depths up to 1,500 feet, and then drops off sharply.  Sunlight penetrates the Euphotic Zone, as seen in the first image, to a depth of 656 feet, and this  ocean layer is where most commercial fishing takes place. As the available light diminishes at greater depths, many sea creatures exhibit bioluminescence, which is the ability to produce small amounts of light, as seen in the second and third images. Intense storms such as tropical storms and hurricanes can impact these ocean waters. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)

Home of Fisherman Lawrence and Nellie
Fishing for a Living in the early 20th Century  was tough work; fishing boats such as those pictured in the first image sailed out of their home harbor almost every day. There were fishing villages along the New England and Canadian coasts, and the people who lived there were a tight community. The homes were usually smaller and simple, as seen in the remaining images, often having stacks of lobster an crab traps as well as their nets laying about. Visit http://americanhistory.si.edu/onthewater/exhibition/3_4.html to learn more about the fishing industry at that time. (Photo Credit: Image (s) used under license from shutterstock.com and unsplash.com.)

Bryce and Sally Ruth
Bryce, Sally, and their father most likely lived just outside of Memphis, TN. Individuals suffering from TB (Tuberculosis), which is probably the illness afflicting Sally Ruth, were isolated from others and lived in shacks similar to the first image. The second image is an actual poster used during that time, sadly incorrect. The third image shows a second-hand shop in Memphis, where many people were able to find the items needed for their families.  Visit  to learn more about family life during this difficult time. Visit  to learn more about how this disease affected so many. (Photo Credit: https://www.loc.gov/item/2017811542/.)

Neal's Diner
Memphis was a bustling city, and the cotton industry was very important there. The first image shows how the city looked at that time. The second image is of a diner in Memphis, TN. Learn more about the history of diners at http://dinerdon.com/history/index.html. The third image shows one of the cotton warehouses on Cotton Row there in the city. (Photo Credit: https://www.loc.gov/item/2017775296/, https://www.loc.gov/item/2017779666/, and https://www.loc.gov/item/2017801836/.)

Doll Hospital Store in Memphis
Doll hospitals are almost a mere memory today. Years ago a doll store would often be owned by a craftsman who would be able to lovingly repair or relatively restore a broken doll either by gluing the ceramic pieces or using a filling compound and then painting the area to match, adding a missing limb or even head, and more. These images show more elaborate dolls that would have been in a collectible doll store. Visit Long Island's Doll Hospital at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2Y6lUyDUeE. (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)

Hobo Bull and His Dog Lucy
The first image shows a dog at a county dump, similar to the place Lucy discovered Edward. The second and third images show how individuals often referred to as "Hobos" might hitch a ride on a freight train. During the Great Depression and even the years leading up to America's involvement in World War II, these nomadic folks traveled the country in search of work to send money home to their families whenever possible. Riding the rails was dangerous, risky, and against the law; boxcars were the vehicle of choice as pictured in the fourth image and rail yards such as in the 5th image  offered a point to change traveling directions. These folks even developed signs and symbols to let others know where to find food and where to avoid; visit  (Photo Credit: Image(s) used under license from shutterstock.com.)