Dear Reader,

Have you read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis? Have you read Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White? If so, you know how great truths about life can be hidden in stories about ordinary people and ordinary animals. Mouse and His Child by Russell Hoban is another great story to warm your heart. It will make you cry and laugh, worry and rejoice. It is the story of some small little windup toys, besieged by rats, struggling to find a place they can call home. 

Be warned: this novel was published over 50 years ago and so the language is slightly different than what you are used to reading in more recently published books. The vocabulary is more sophisticated. And the story is not short. But the lively writing will carry you through the 244 pages in no time at all. Have fun!

Hoban, Russell. Mouse and His Child. New York : Scholastic Inc., 2017, c2001.

By the way, you might like to notice the illustrations when you read the book. They’re by David Small, who has illustrated many fine picture books. You might like to try some picture books by Russell Hoban, too: A Bargain for Frances and Bread and Jam for Frances. They’re for younger readers but they’ll make you laugh and remember your own younger years. 

Ms. R. 

P.S. If you are 8 years old and already a very good reader, you might like to try more of the stories on THIS PAGE.