Customer Reviews

Nicolas, Where Have You Been?

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

As always, Lionni does a marvelous job of storytelling and captivates the reader with his wonderful art in this book. However, I want to warn other parents that this book contains an image that may be disturbing to very young readers. I checked this book out at my local library for my 4 year old to read, and thankfully, I saw the picture before letting him look at the book. There is a two-page spread where the mice are declaring 'War! War on the birds!' after Nicolas has told them what has happened to him. The picture shows all of the mice descending on the birds with sharp objects and one bird is being bludgeoned by a very angry mouse. It shows him on top of the bird stabbing it, with blood spilling out. I don't know how I would have explained this act of violence to my innocent 4 year old, so I'm just glad I previewed the book before he saw it. You will definitely want to read this book yourself before giving it to your child.

Leo Lionni's NICHOLAS, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN? tells of one Nicholas Mouse, who is carried away by a big ugly bird while hunting for sweet red berries. Days later when he returns home his loyal friends decide to begin a war on birds - and Nicholas is still trying to tell his complete story! The moral is that one bard bird doesn't make a flock...and is well done.

I can't say that I have ever read a children's book quite like this one. It has a depth of thought and plot that you just don't see in most children's books.

The story line is pretty well explained by the "School Library Journal" reviewer in the Editorial Review section so I won't rehash it. However, what they don't tell you is that there are two pages towards the end of the book on which the angry mice's desires are illustrated (though thankfully not acted out).

Because they have not heard all of Nicholas' story, the angry mice envision chasing the birds with pointed sticks and hurting them. It is very poignant and both my husband and I were at first shocked to see the images.

Thankfully, our children (5 and 3) hadn't a clue as to what was happening except that the birds were being 'scared off' by the mice.

So why, with our obvious reservations, did I give this book 5 stars? Principally, because the message of tolerance is important. As is the message that you should wait to hear 'all of a story' before drawing a conclusion.

My children are young and sheltered. My 3 year old thought that the mice were 'painting' the one bird with red paint. However, this is a book that I think is more than appropriate for older children and we will keep it to provide the valuable lessons that it can teach.

Five stars. Can be read to young children, but contains violent images.

Note: Leo Lionni was on my entering Kindergartener's Summer Reading List and most of his works are non-controversial.

After being abducted by a large bird, Nicholas Mouse begins an adventure in which he experiences first hand Uncle Raymond's words of wisdom: "one bad bird doesn't make a flock." Lionni's modern fable is an excellent tool for teaching Jane Schaeffer's techniques for writing literary analysis. The story's moral can serve as a stated thesis that students must support with textual evidence, explaining concrete details gleaned from Lionni's colorful mixed media collages that have been bolstered by their own commentary. Furthermore, students may also find meaning in changes in the characters' eyes, posture, and mouths as well as the red endpages that bear the same color as the sweet red berries which feature so prominently in the plot.

Nicolas and not Nicholas is back in print after a long hiatus. "Nicolas, Where Have You Been?" is rich in potential for a variety text comprehension activities. [...].

Monique Richard
Professor Emeritus
School of ECE
Ryerson University

We loved the story, but the one art page of the mice attacking and killing the birds is too gruesome for preschoolers. I would save this for grades 1-3 with a discussion of war and aggression. Not a simple story.

I saw this book in the store and decided to flip through it to check it out. I always pre-read the books for content before reading to my 2.5 year old daughter. Well, I was very close to putting it in my carriage for purchase when I came across the picture of mice chasing birds with pointed objects and of one mouse standing over a bird with a pointed stick and the bird bleeding on the ground. Despite what the other reviewer said, my 2.5 year old would DEFINITELY not be confused by this picture and would point it out directly and get upset. For those of you with sensitive children, beware of this one. Don't we have enough violence in the world today without reading it to our kids before they go to sleep at night? I'm sure there must have been another way for the author to get his point across than use bloody images in a children's book. Egads.