Customer Reviews

Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears (Kate Greenaway Medal (Awards))

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(16)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

It is really difficult to figure out what this book is. It's not the type of book that you necessarily sit down and read; it's the type of book that you appreciate for its visuals and its subtle play on words with images. I seem to enjoy the book much more than my daughter, so I'm not even sure it can be classified as a children's book.

Each page is devoted to a fear, using the lengthy scientific term for the fear. It explains what the fear is, and then the page contains images, items, or text associated with that fear, from the perspective of the mouse. Some of the images are very abstract, and therefore most children would miss the fun play-on-words present in this book. My daughter, who is 7, was shocked by the page devoted to "fear of knives", which used the nursery rhyme "Three Blind Mice" to get the point across. There's a lot on that page, though, and plenty to look at, but not necessarily appropriate for younger children. In fact, parts of this book are so abstract that it's hard to determine what age range is appropriate -- it depends on the child and how much that child can appreciate art.

The book, however, is a work of art, and I'm personally impressed. Some of the pages are cut specifically to match the artwork - so you can view an image on the page underneath, for example. One page has a hole punched through it, while another has edges or corners cut off. On other pages, there are additional pieces pasted to the pages -- postcards, newspaper clippings, maps, etc. A map in particular is fascinating, extremely detailed, and entertaining -- it looks like a map of England, but instead is a map of a mouse, where body parts and organs appear as cities, roads, and islands. All of the artwork brings the book together -- and after a while, you may actually start to feel like you are reviewing somebody's journal, treating it with care as you turn the pages and unfold some of the attached items. The book's pages are extremely thick and should resist wear.

Although I enjoy this book, I don't think it is something my daughter will pick up on her own. It's really the type of book that you share -- pointing out to each other the odd things that appear on the pages. It could use more text and a bit more dialogue, and therefore remains just an interesting concept.

The premise of this book is that a little mouse has found a human's self-help workbook related to dealing with your fears. The little mouse tries to use the workbook to help herself. She is afraid of a lot of things, since she is so tiny and vulnerable (cats, owls, dogs, spiders, shadows, etc.).

Each page of this book is clever, gorgeous, funny, and sweet. The illustrations are so rich and imaginative, and the premise so unique, that I think this has to be considered one of the best children's books of the year. This book is full of cool foldouts, lift the flaps, and hidden interesting drawings and facts. My favorite thing about it is the way it can be shared between parent and child- there is much to talk about on each page, so it can be a really sharing, snuggle up sort of experience. The sweet, incredibly expressive, and VERY endearing little mouse provides a wonderful way to talk about feelings (and help kids build empathy, learn to deal with their own feelings, etc.).

Inevitably, some parents will try to read this to toddlers and will be unhappy with the result. But this is a wonderful book to share with the older picture book set. (If your child isn't old enough to get the basic concept of the book outlined here/understand that mice are timid and that a little mouse is trying to overcome her fears, wait a couple of years and then share the fun!)

In the end, the nifty "workbook" helps the mouse express her feelings creatively. She gets a little perspective when she notes that an enormous human is sometimes afraid of her! Absolutely unique, satisfying, interesting, smart, witty, beautifully illustrated... this is a great book.

Emily Gravett is one of the major talents in illustration today. This beautiful book is lots of fun-- an incredibly creative effort.

********************************************************
I've just looked through the new reviews, and noticed that several of the reviewers completely missed the point of this book and thought that the author was encouraging children to write in the book! :) Again, the whole point is that the little mouse has found a blank self-help book, and the MOUSE fills the book in herself. :)

This is a fantastic, creatively designed book! The little mouse mentions every-day things that it would be afraid of (cats, dogs, people+), and at the top of each page there is a real definition of certain fears. The illustrations are very well done with a mix of photographs, sketches (which are fantastic), and 3D pull outs (like the map of the mouse, with fears written on it!). My favorite feature is that the book encourages active participation, and that even as an adult, I was interested in checking out all the "nooks and crannies" of the book's pages. There's much hidden, and I had several laughs. Fun book, with a creative layout, and multi-layered approach to learning!

Little Mouse is afraid of many things: spiders, shadows, knives, and cats, of course. He draws pictures of them all in this "journal" of fears. But at least there's one thing that's always afraid of him.

This is a very clever book. The story isn't complicated; each page is a different fear with minimal story-text. I thought it unusual that a children's book would have the names and definitions for various phobias (such as arachnophobia for fear of spiders) at the top of each page, something my 14 year-old found more interesting than my 6 year-old. But where the story was kind of a "miss," the artwork was a "hit." Some of the pages have holes or edges that have been "chewed" by the mouse. There are photos and newspaper clippings taped in the book, including a fold-out map (which I thought was England but turned out to be the shape of a mouse). It was this more than the story which attracted my children's attention.

I'm not a fan of the pop-up and fold-out type of book because they generally don't last well. I've already noticed that the edges of the hole on the dust jacket catch on things and are going to tear eventually. But this really is a cute and clever book. I don't know that it would be helpful in any way for fearful or worrisome children, but it might be entertaining.

To start off, the paper and binding of this book are first rate. The book is suggested for readers between the ages of 4 and 8 and the illustrations are perfect for this age category ... as an adult I also enjoyed flipping through the pages and admired the artwork.

One could call this an "interactive" book. The pages define different fears and also encourages the young reader to write their fears on the pages themselves, as type of therapy or way to open up a conversation with a parent I suppose. Reading this book aloud to a child wouldn't be as fun as it would be to sit down and draw out their fears on each page, and this is how I suggest the book be treated. As such, it wouldn't be a book to pass on from one generation to the next.

All-in-all, for the level of artwork, creativity in page layout, and educational content, I would say this book is certainly worth the money.

We can all remember being afraid of something or many things when we were little and some of us may still carry those fears with us for all of our lives. It doesn't help to tell anyone, inlcuding children, that their fears are irrational or silly.

Emily Gravett's beautiful & charming book is designed to acknowledge the most common fears, "monster under the bed," "loud noises," "dirt," "spiders," "insects," "bathroom mishaps," and many more by attaching a Latin name, excellent illustrations & collages.

Children/readers and are encouraged to add or address their own fears by writing them in this book. As stated by the author, "A Fear Faced Is A Fear Defeated."

Of course, not all fears are without foundation. I thoroughly enjoyed reading it.

"Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears" is part of a growing literature on children's fears and worries. Such books are very welcome for parents coping with little worriers. This book focuses on the fears of Little Mouse, with each feared object or situation depicted in word and picture. For example, Little Mouse's fear of insects is labeled Entomophobia, and he is shown trapped in a spider's web. The pictures and design are absolutely beautiful and have great details. For example, some pages have chew marks from Little Mouse, and there are a few foldout pieces, such as a map with pictures showing Little Mouse's fear of heights. It's the kind of book that requires a few reads for the audience to absorb all of the details.

However, I found the overall tone a bit confusing. The pictures are sometimes a bit graphic for children with worries. For example, the fear of knives pictures shows Little Mouse with his tail cut off and bandaged. Now for most children, such imagery could be amusing, but if this book is targeting children with actual fears, some of these pictures could actually feed into the worry. Furthermore, books that target children with worry usually have some coping component concerning. "Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears" attempts to demonstrate coping by showing that the shadow that scares Little Mouse is actually a girl, who is then shown to be afraid of Little Mouse. This ending teaches a good lesson but does not really promote coping per se. The book does encourage children to write their fears in the book, but it doesn't suggest what they can do about these fears. So overall I don't think I'd recommend this book to parents of children with anxiety concerns.

In that case, would typical children be interested in this book? Possibly. Some children might like reading the names of the phobias, and I do think that many children (and adults) will enjoy the pictures. However, I think that the content simply isn't compelling enough for the average child. Even though this book is beautifully designed, the tone is a bit off for the target audience.

Little Mouse's Big Book of Fears is an odd sort of book, part story book, part blank book, part collage, illustrated around the margins with scribbly drawings of the creatures and things Little Mouse and Emily Gravett fear.

The reader is exhorted to note their own fears in the blank spaces which can be found on most pages between the illustrations, the mouse-nibbled holes and the clinical descriptions of various phobias, including one I suffered from after watching The Birds, ornithophobia - fear of birds. On that page, feathers are turned into monsters who menace poor Mousie while a line of belligerent crows sit in a line across the top of the page smirking - if a creature with a beak can smirk, and I have to say after I looked at those, they can.

The book's contention is that a fear faced, and named, is a fear with some of its stuffing removed.

It is a large book and a thing of quiet wonder. The art is delightful and for the life of me I cannot understand how the heck can they produce those inserts and artistically nibbled pages cost-effectively other than by hiring loads of mice slave labor... but mine is not to wonder why, mine is just to read and enjoy - and I did.

I would definitely consider this book as a gift for a children ages 3 to 7 years, especially ones with even the mildest of phobias.

This children's book deals with common childhood fears and cleverly categorizes them with actual names of phobias at the top of each section. The book has a rather dark format which I would not recommend for younger children. It is recommended for children aged 4-8yrs. but I would revise that to maybe 6-10yrs. It really depends on the individual child of course. For very young children I would be afraid of creating new fears from this book, but for an older child I don't think it would be a problem. I love the tattered looking design of the book and it contains inserts that can be opened, including a map.

Let me start with what I really enjoyed about the book. The layout is truly interesting and creative -- some of the pages have the corners cut to look like they were gnawed on, some pictures are taped in scrapbook style, and one of the pages even has a large foldout map. There is a diversity of texture and style on each page that makes turning the page fun, and I wondered what kind of creative layout was in store with each turn.
But having said that, there was not much else that really grabbed me as an adult reader. Each page gives the clinical name and definition of a phobia Little Mouse has, and then an illustration to go along with it. There isn't really much of a story. It also would be hard for me to imagine it keeping the attention of most of the children I know, since the color scheme is kind of dull (mostly grays and browns and black).
If you're really into books with interesting layouts and textures, you might enjoy this one. But for a book children want to read again and again, or for people wanting to hear a good story, this probably isn't the best choice.