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4.1 AVERAGE
4.1 AVERAGE
I loved this book. Oh, wait, I thought I read picture books for my son. Well, he loved it, too. Who wouldn't love a little mouse house in the walls?
Mary drops her spoon on the floor every night and the mouse drops hers, so they can take a peek at her. Mary and the mouse grow up and move away, but they—and their children—end up together again in the end.
The pictures are so perfect for this story! My son loved the cross-sections so you could see into the mouse's house. The pictures in the first half have a Victorian feel and reminded me of [b:The Borrowers|348573|The Borrowers (The Borrowers #1)|Mary Norton|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173961284s/348573.jpg|802336]. It's definitely its own book, though, and worth checking out.
Mary drops her spoon on the floor every night and the mouse drops hers, so they can take a peek at her. Mary and the mouse grow up and move away, but they—and their children—end up together again in the end.
The pictures are so perfect for this story! My son loved the cross-sections so you could see into the mouse's house. The pictures in the first half have a Victorian feel and reminded me of [b:The Borrowers|348573|The Borrowers (The Borrowers #1)|Mary Norton|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173961284s/348573.jpg|802336]. It's definitely its own book, though, and worth checking out.
Two lives run parallel to one another within a single home. Upstairs there is Mary who lives with her mother, father, sister, and brother. Within the walls of the house there is also a mouse that lives with her very own mother, father, sister, and brother. As we watch, both Mary and the mouse go to school, learn the same things, and one night they both drop some cutlery while cleaning up after dinner. This tiny event means that through a mouse hole Mary sees the mouse and the mouse sees Mary. They'd love to talk but Mary has been warned off of mice, and the mouse has been warned off of humans. Still that doesn't stop them from dropping cutlery each night and waving to one another. Time goes on and the mouse and Mary grow up. Mary has a daughter named Maria and the mouse has a daughter called, simply, Mouse Mouse. They happen to live in the same house, and one night Maria drops her books when Mouse Mouse does the same. The difference? After a little time both Maria and Mouse Mouse become brave and meet one another so that they can whisper a loud and happy, "Goodnight!" before going to bed
First of all, praise be to Schwartz and Wade for knowing enough to pair McClintock and Donofrio together on this story. Since the artist normally works in a world of delicate lines and tiny details, I firmly believe that nobody could have complemented this tale better with her imagery. Miniscule details are one advantage, but there's also the fact that Ms. McClintock had the wherewithal to know how to mirror her two separate worlds. I loved watching how McClintock chose to break up the panels. Sometimes you'll have two long pictures on one page, showing the child and her mouse equivalent on one side and two different but similarly aligned images of the same sort on the other. Other times there are full two-page spreads that do the same thing. And then SOMETIMES McClintock switches everything about and will put the mouse on one page and the human on the other in a very different manner. A good illustrator knows the importance of keeping the reader's eye moving up and down, back and forth about the pages and Ms. McClintock does just that.
I should be a good girl and not forget to compliment Ms. Donofrio on her story as well. Lest you start thinking that this is some didactic treatment of "overcoming prejudice" and the like, allow me to reassure you that the lesson here is subtle. Far more obvious is Donofrio's smart wordplay and efficient use of her sentences. It allows for a book that is very touching, even when there isn't an abundance of weepy sentiment going on. It is spare, crisp, clean writing.
Some people have compared this book to Mary Norton's "The Borrowers", when viewing the tiny household items that make up the mouse homes. I'm not entirely certain the comparison is fair, but it's probably the best there is out there anyway. With its beautiful illustrations, thick paper, and sublime watercolors I'm just utterly charmed by the pairing of Donofrio and McClintock. Perhaps if we are all good little librarians and parents and dutifully buy this book in droves then maybe we'll be lucky enough to have another pairing of these two women in the near future. Hey, man. A girl can dream.
First of all, praise be to Schwartz and Wade for knowing enough to pair McClintock and Donofrio together on this story. Since the artist normally works in a world of delicate lines and tiny details, I firmly believe that nobody could have complemented this tale better with her imagery. Miniscule details are one advantage, but there's also the fact that Ms. McClintock had the wherewithal to know how to mirror her two separate worlds. I loved watching how McClintock chose to break up the panels. Sometimes you'll have two long pictures on one page, showing the child and her mouse equivalent on one side and two different but similarly aligned images of the same sort on the other. Other times there are full two-page spreads that do the same thing. And then SOMETIMES McClintock switches everything about and will put the mouse on one page and the human on the other in a very different manner. A good illustrator knows the importance of keeping the reader's eye moving up and down, back and forth about the pages and Ms. McClintock does just that.
I should be a good girl and not forget to compliment Ms. Donofrio on her story as well. Lest you start thinking that this is some didactic treatment of "overcoming prejudice" and the like, allow me to reassure you that the lesson here is subtle. Far more obvious is Donofrio's smart wordplay and efficient use of her sentences. It allows for a book that is very touching, even when there isn't an abundance of weepy sentiment going on. It is spare, crisp, clean writing.
Some people have compared this book to Mary Norton's "The Borrowers", when viewing the tiny household items that make up the mouse homes. I'm not entirely certain the comparison is fair, but it's probably the best there is out there anyway. With its beautiful illustrations, thick paper, and sublime watercolors I'm just utterly charmed by the pairing of Donofrio and McClintock. Perhaps if we are all good little librarians and parents and dutifully buy this book in droves then maybe we'll be lucky enough to have another pairing of these two women in the near future. Hey, man. A girl can dream.
So glad Jenn posted this book -- I adore it! The parallel stories of a mouse and girl who live in the same house (and the stories of their daughters doing the same) are told in a visually inventive variety of ways, from panels to tiny character pictures to double-page spreads. With tiny details, including mouse furnishings made from human objects, this book is a dream for anyone who likes dollhouses or The Borrowers. There is a glowing golden light that suffuses most of these pictures.
Just the right amount of nostalgia and sweetness. Wonderfully elaborate pictures to pore over.
I love this book. The details in the illustrations are amazing. Great for sharing one on one.
