"The circus life sure is grand, but let's face it, I'm no flea! I'm an earmite, I gotta get me an ear!" So declares Mighty Mite the earmite, a wandering hobo of an insect whose discovery of a toy boat allows him to set sail out of the wild and in search of a "home sweet home," but not before a stint in a traveling flea circus along the way. Meanwhile, speaking of circuses, a lonely ape named Gabby has fled one himself and now scrounges for food and shelter in the back alleys of a strange city. But what does this have to do with our hero?
Mighty Mite unfolds via a uniquely inventive formal approach: the left-hand pages tell Gabby's story, the right-hand pages our eponymous hero's, and not before the last page does the intertwined fate of both become clear. Mighty Mite's pages are presented in luscious full-color, Gabby's in stark grey. Presented as a lovely yet inexpensive hardcover objet d'art, Mighty Mite is a wonderfully unique and elegantly crafted story for all ages and a perfect introduction to Millionaire's absurdist blend of gung-ho humor and exquisite pen and ink illustrations. Deceptively simple yet ornately packaged, this is simply a wonderful little book that will command reading after reading amongst children and adults alike.
Tony Millionaire is the creator of the popular syndicated weekly comic strip Maakies as well as the award-winning Sock Monkey comic books and children's books.
