mice

Cornbread and Poppy

Sophie Rosen , , , ,

Cordell, Matthew. Cornbread and Poppy. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2022.
Best friends – at least in stories – are often unalike. Frog and Toad by Arnold Lobel. George and Martha by James Marshall. Snake and Lizard by Joy Cowley. Skunk and Badger by Amy Timberlake. Cornbread and Poppy are another two friends who are completely unalike. Cornbread has prepared for winter: food is harvested, preserved, and put away for the coming months. Poppy hasn’t. She has spent her time playing. But now the cold weather has arrived and she is not prepared. What should Cornbread do? Well, help her, of course. So the two little mice set off for Holler Mountain to forage for food for Poppy. And what an adventure! This 80-page little chapter book is perfect for readers ready for longer stories and for teachers ready to introduce literary elements to their students. Happily recommended!

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The Piano Recital

Sophie Rosen , ,

Miyakoshi, Akiko. The Piano Recital. Toronto: Kids Can Press, 2019.
Nervousness. Momo is overwhelmed with nervousness. Will she be able to play the piano on stage in front of all those people? And then she spies a tiny door and follows a tiny mouse into a fantastical world of acrobats and orchestras and ballerinas all joyously performing in front of a vast audience. This magical story by an award-winning author and illustrator is recommended for young readers who face their own nervous moments.

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A Busy Year

Sophie Rosen , , ,

Lionni, Leo. A Busy Year. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2021.
Two mice – twins – befriend a tree on the first day of a new year. Every month – as the seasons change – they visit her and care for her until it is winter once again. A charming board book – with a humorous Christmas surprise at the end – recommended for children 4 to 8 years old.

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The Rescuers

Sophie Rosen , , ,

Dear Reader,

Do you have time to enjoy a classic novel of courage and adventure? Do you have the imagination to enjoy a tale of brave and noble mice? This 149-page story will capture your heart with its quietly lovely sentences. And the endearing characters will remind you that at any moment you, too, could be called on a mission to selflessly help others. 

Sharp, Margery. The Rescuers. New York: New York Review Books, [2012], c1987.

“Miss Bianca, a white mouse of great beauty and self-confidence, travels with the ambassador’s son to Norway on behalf of the Prisoner’s Aid Society in a perilous mission to rescue a poet imprisoned in the dreadful Black Castle.” – CIP This edition is exquisitely illustrated by Garth Williams, the famed illustrator of countless classic stories. 

More great novels for readers 8 years old and up.

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Happy reading! 

Ms. R. 

Mouse and His Child

Sophie Rosen , , , ,

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.

Keeping each other safe…

Sophie Rosen , , ,

Oral, Feridun. A Warm Winter. Hong Kong: Michael Neugebauer Publishing, 2016, c2015.
Little Mouse needs more firewood to warm his nest. But he’s not strong enough to pull the pile of sticks back home. Maybe some friends can help? This heartwarming story from Turkey – translated into English – will delight readers and listeners up to 9 years of age. 

“Winter is the time for comfort, for good food and warmth, for the touch of a friendly hand and for a talk beside the fire: it is the time for home.” – Edith Sitwell, British poet 

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