Mouse, Fox, Rabbit, and Squirrel watch fearfully as their friend Owl seems to get smaller as he flies away from them. Will he disappear altogether? A comic view of spatial perspectives.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
From School Library Journal
PreSchool-Grade 1. Four animal friends, distressed that Owl seems to shrink as he flies away, each set off in turn to warn him. But those remaining behind notice that their companions also get smaller as they move further away. Only Mouse is left, and though he fears disappearing like the rest, he bravely sets out to alert his friends to their danger. When he joins them in the woods on the far side of the fields, he realizes with relief that he and the others are their normal sizes. But now their forest home in the distance seems to have all but disappeared. Will they ever be able to return home? From its title, done in progressively shrinking letters, to its reassuring conclusion, this humorous story of spatial relationships is just perfect for young audiences. The repetitive text invites participation, and children who realize how silly the animals' fears are will feel justly proud of their own superior knowledge. The double-page spreads, executed in gouache paints, are large and uncluttered, and the woodland scenes are inhabited by winsome animals stylized with patterned fur, signature Hutchins. Pair this offering with Sally Noll's Watch Where You Go (Greenwillow, 1990) for a story hour about things that are not always what they seem.?Marianne Saccardi, Norwalk Community-Technical College, CT
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
From Booklist
Ages 3^-5. Spatial perspective may not seem like a natural topic for a picture book, but it surely is in the hands of Hutchins. Fox, Rabbit, Squirrel, and Mouse are worried as they watch their friend Owl fly off into the distant wood. The wood is tiny, and as Owl flies, he seems to be shrinking. The group sets out to get him back before he shrinks entirely, but Mouse wonders as he chases after the others whether he is getting smaller, too. When he thinks he is just about to disappear, he reaches the now big wood and finds out he is not small but just the right size. However, when it's time to return to their own (now small) wood, the animals are worried that it has shrunk. Preschoolers will enjoy both figuring out what it is going on in the pithy story and feeling smarter than the animal friends (some of whom do come to understand what is happening). The text is perfectly illustrated by Hutchins' crisp artwork featuring elemental shapings just right for young eyes. At school or at home, this makes for a good read. Ilene Cooper
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Skill - Near and Far,
This review is from: Shrinking Mouse (Hardcover)
Pat Hutchins has once again written a book that helps children learn about cooperation, sequencing events, and how things look when they are far away. This is a book that I feel is worth sharing with children, because they really look at things in a very similar way. It is also a story that can be used to instruct children on the concepts of: sequencing, near and far, and working together.
3.0 out of 5 stars
Darn perspectives!,
By
This review is from: Shrinking Mouse (Hardcover)
This is an adorable little way to teach the principals of perspective and distance. The characters are hilariously naive, and it's fun to see their reactions, which are delightfully overdramatic. But hey, they braved shrinking in order to save their friends. My class loved this.
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Inside This Book
(learn more)
First Sentence:
Fox, Rabbit, Squirrel, and Mouse were sitting at the edge of their wood, looking across the fields. Read the first page New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Fox, Rabbit, Squirrel, and Mouse were sitting at the edge of their wood, looking across the fields. Read the first page New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 3
books:
5
books
cite this book:
- Rosie's Walk by Pat Hutchins in Back Flap
- Where's the Baby? by Pat Hutchins in Back Flap
- The House That Sailed Away by Pat Hutchins in Back Flap
- Some of My Best Friends Are Books: Guiding Gifted Readers from Pre-School to High School (2nd Edition) by Judith Wynn Halsted on page 282, Back Matter (1), and Back Matter (2)
- Growing Up With Literature by Walter Sawyer on page 227
- Gifted Books, Gifted Readers: Literature Activities to Excite Young Minds by Nancy J. Polette on page 54
- The Big Book of Picture-Book Authors & Illustrators: Grades K-3 by James Preller on page 58
- Cultural Identity in Kindergarten: A Study of Asian Indian Children (Studies in Asian Americans) by Susan Laird Mody on page 120
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