“The sound of the king's music made Despereaux's soul grow large and light inside of him.”

“And he discovered, finally, the source of the honey-sweet sound.The sound was music.The sound was King Phillip playing his guitar and singing for his daughter, the Princess Pea, every night before she fell asleep.Hidden in a hole in the wall of the princess's bedroom, the mouse listened with all his heart. The sound of the King's music made Despereaux's soul grow large and light inside of him.Oh," he said, "it sounds like heaven. It smells like honey.”

“Despereaux," she whispered.And then she shouted it, "Despereaux!"Reader, nothing is sweeter in this sad world than the sound of someone you love calling your name.Nothing.”

“music is the arithmetic of sounds as optics is the geometry of light”

“The music sounded crazy. Crazy—as if Blake had never known how to create a coherent song on a musical instrument.Maybe this Livia thing has finally broken him. A soul like Blake’s can’t make it in this world.”

“He felt a happiness stirring deep inside him, shining a light into recesses of his soul that had long been devoured by darkness.”