A review by cetaylor05
Sheila Rae, the Brave by Kevin Henkes

3.0

Sheila Rae, The Brave is one of the many titles in Henkes’ series of mouse books. Sheila Rae prides herself in her ferocity. Unlike her younger sister Louise, Sheila seeks out the danger in the mundane and charges after it. One day, her adventure seeking backfires, and our heroine finds herself alone and in need of rescuing by Louise who proves that she too is brave. As always, Henkes’ watercolor and ink mice have such expressive facial features and postures that they gently shed light on an individual’s frailty without being jarring and encourage the reader to reflect and mature by living vicariously in their world. Consequently, Sheila Rae, The Brave could serve as an easily accessible exemplar of dynamic characterization and the characteristics of the hero cycle explained by Peter R. Stillman in Introduction to Myth.