Dory Fantasmagory is the first novel in an illustrated middle-grade series by Abby Hanlon, published in 2014. Hanlon, an educator and former first-grade teacher in the New York City public school system, wrote and illustrated the book using her own sibling dynamics for inspiration. The story follows the playful adventures of six-year-old Dory, whose active imagination constantly annoys her older siblings. Rooted in Dory’s point of view, the novel touches on the themes of Shifting Sibling Dynamics, Defining Maturity, and The Incorporation of Imagination into Narration.

Since its publication, Dory Fantasmagory has become a modern classic of children’s literature, garnering critical acclaim and gaining a wide readership for its authentic voice and expressive illustrations. The first book in the series was named Best Book of the Year by Kirkus, Publisher’s Weekly, and Parents Magazine. Hanlon has published seven books in the Dory series.

This study guide uses the 2015 edition, published by Puffin Books, an imprint of Penguin Young Readers Group.

Plot Summary

Six-year-old Dory is the youngest of three siblings, but everyone calls her “Rascal” because of her perceived unruliness. It is summer break, and Dory spends her days running around in her nightgown and trying to convince her older siblings, Violet and Luke, to play with her. When her siblings dismiss her for being too immature, Dory plays fantastical games with her imaginary friend, Mary, and the various monsters she imagines seeing around the house.

Violet and Luke make up a mythical villain named Mrs. Gobble Gracker, a 507-year-old child-kidnapper, in an effort to scare Dory into behaving more maturely and rationally. However, Dory becomes very interested in Mrs. Gobble Gracker and begins imagining her all over the house. Dory decides to go to battle against Mrs. Gobble Gracker and sneaks into Luke’s room, looking for darts. Luke discovers Dory hiding in his closet, and Dory throws a huge temper tantrum. Once she finishes crying, she borrows a magic dart to throw at Mrs. Gobble Gracker.

Dory gets distracted from her efforts to defeat Mrs. Gobble Gracker when she notices Violet and Luke playing “house” together. Desperate to be included, Dory volunteers to play the role of the baby, but her siblings reject her, choosing Violet’s baby doll, Cherry, instead. Dory goes to bed, but before she can fall asleep, Mary reminds her about the dart and Mrs. Gobble Gracker. Dory sneaks out of her room and imagines throwing the dart at Mrs. Gobble Gracker’s behind, believing it causes her to collapse and fall asleep.

Dory puts on her cow costume as a disguise in case Mrs. Gobble Gracker wakes up. She tries various strategies to get her siblings to laugh at her jokes and pay attention to her, but they brush her off. When her mom tries to get her to take off the cow costume, Dory throws another temper tantrum, frustrated that her family does not understand her needs, real or imaginary. Dory lies in the hammock and thinks about whether she really does act like a baby. A new imaginary friend appears, a gnome-like fairy godmother named Mr. Nuggy, and Dory asks him to transform her into a puppy. The next time she sees Mrs. Gobble Gracker, she evades discovery thanks to her new puppy disguise. Violet still considers Dory immature, but Luke enjoys playing with Dory in her new puppy persona. Dory is thrilled to receive attention from Luke and latches onto the successful puppy persona.

Dory’s mom drags her to the doctor but Dory refuses to drop her dog act. After the doctor gives Dory a shot, Dory uses her lollipop to give the doctor a pretend shot right back. Dory’s mom is furious about her behavior and sends her to time out when they get home. From her room, Dory can hear her family complaining about Dory’s behavior. Feeling isolated and misunderstood, she imagines that Mrs. Gobble Gracker has replaced her and is eating popcorn with her family, and Dory vows to get rid of Mrs. Gobble Gracker once and for all. She and Mr. Nuggy assemble ingredients for a poison soup and feed it to Mrs. Gobble Gracker during dinner, but the soup fails to work. Dory thinks Mrs. Gobble Gracker is going to kidnap her in retaliation, but at the last second, Dory successfully convinces Mrs. Gobble Gracker to take baby Cherry instead.

That evening, Violet notices her doll is missing. Dory retraces her steps, trying to remember what she did with the doll while she was pretending to fight Mrs. Gobble Gracker. She begins to wonder if Mrs. Gobble Gracker is real after all. The doll turns up on the porch, and Dory finally remembers throwing the doll out the door. Dory admits to Violet that she knew Mrs. Gobble Gracker isn’t real and leaves a bouncy ball under her pillow as a gift.

The next day, Luke and Violet play with the bouncy ball but still exclude Dory. The ball bounces into the toilet, and Dory finally impresses her siblings by reaching into the toilet to rescue the ball. Violet and Luke allow Dory to invent a new game for them to play, and they bounce the ball together. When they play house, Violet and Luke finally let Dory play the role of the baby.