Customer Reviews

The Porcupine Mouse

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

 

 

"The Porcupine Mouse" is a little-known but fine story about the nature of courage. (Parents should, however, be prepared to explain the wrongness of lying-under any and all circumstances- to their children after the story's climax.) Ms. Begin's drawings are sweet but not saccharine and provide an excellent backdrop to the tale. When mouse brothers Louie and Dan set out from their overcrowded house (wonderfully portrayed by Ms. Begin), their differences in many cases-but especially in courage-quickly become evident. Louie is intimidated by the predators that could catch them if they remain homeless too long, but Dan boastfully brandishes a stick and alleges that he isn't scared by any of them. However, hints are dropped throughout the book, and the final showdown, in which Louie tries to save Dan from a cat, makes the reader wonder whether cautious Louie is really the braver.

In addition to being a fair addition to your boy or girl's childhood reading, this story is a good one for trying to explain to a child that courage is doing what must be done when it has to be done, rather than looking for trouble or boasting about exploits. I give it a thumbs up.

The first comment our 7 year old has was, "It's so pretty...." -- She loved the pictures. And all three of our children (5, 7 & 9) thoroughly enjoyed the story, laughing multiple times during the reading.

BTW, the artwork *is* stunning.

This book is a story about 2 mice. They are sent away by Mama Mouse to find a new house. The reason they had to find a new house for themselves is because they were the oldest 2 mice in the house and it was so crowded to begin with. Dan and Louie are scared of owls and cats, because they eat mice. They venture out and when they see a dark shadow swoop down from the trees the run to hide when they accidently bump into a new house. They walk in and notice its perfect so they stay there.
Dan and Louie end up having an arguement on how to decorate the house and they don't speak to each other until Louie runs out to get a bag of pine-cones and a cat is about to eat him. Dan tells the cat that Louie is really a porcupine and his spines were in the bag. The cat puts his hand in the bag and runs away and then he never comes back and they live happily ever after. I recommend this book because the illustrations are phenominal and it has a very good moral.