Customer Reviews

The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse (Potter)

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The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse is yet another example of Beatrix Potter's brilliance in creating a fun and entertaining story for children with the use of animals.

Mrs. Tittlemouse is a very tidy mouse who loathes guests that are dirty and drop by unannounced. The later happens quite often due to the many sandy passages leading to her house that attract bugs. Mrs. Tittlemouse spends the first half of the story shuing out unwelcome guests, and then in the second half her most dreaded surprise guest shows up: Mr. Jackson, a pesky honey loving frog that never wipes his feet. A long day follows. After Mrs. Tittlemouse's frustrating day, she begins cleaning for a fortnight. Mr. Jackson does end up coming by again. He is given the honey that he desires, but not granted access to the house.

I believe this tale teaches children the importance of being neat, especially in somebody else's home. Also, the fact that Mr. Jackson was given honey in the end adds a nice touch to the tale. It doesn't push revenge, and gently preaches kindness for even the most disagreeable of house guests.

Darien Summers, author of The Mischievous Hare, a children's book.The Mischievous Hare

Children who love animals of all kinds, and especially insects, will love the Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse. Mrs. Thomasina Tittlemouse is rather obsessed with cleanliness. She is constantly sweeping and dusting. Unfortunately for her there are a variety of unwelcome guests that invade her tidy home: a beetle, a ladybug, a spider, a butterfly, a group of bumblebees who have made a nest in her storeroom without permission, and a most unpleasant toad named Mr. Jackson who never wipes his feet and creates a terrible mess. However there is a happy ending to this story. The watercolors are beautiful---I particularly like the one of Miss Butterfly tasting the sugar. If your young ones have a dislike for creepy crawly creatures, then this story might not be for them, but I have always found Beatrix Potter's tales delightful and unique, and The Tale of Mrs. Tittlemouse none the less so.

Mrs. Tittlemouse is a fastidious little mouse, living alone in a very clean house. Whenever another animal or insect comes to her home, she shoos it away and sweeps up after it; but when a swarm of bees make their home in one of her store-rooms she is pressed to allow her boorish toad neighbor Mr. Jackson to evict them. After he leaves, she laments the terrible mess made of her home, and sets to work straightening things up. When she is satisfied, she gives a civilized party for five other mice, but must solve the problem of Mr. Jackson, who arrives uninvited, following the smell of honey. She has, however, anticipated his rude behavior and prevented his entry by diminishing the size of her doorway. She hands out some refreshment through the window and he happily enjoys it on the lawn.

The story itself is charming, and Mrs. Tittlemouse cleverly solves the problem of appropriately protecting her home's boundaries without being rude herself. What is most endearing about this story, as in all of Beatrix Potter's works, is the fact that her anthropomorphized animals strongly retain their real animal qualities, both in illustrations and in their behavior. Her stories aren't really about human beings in animal form; they are a kind of magical world in which real animals take on certain human traits. This is a wonderful kind of fantasy that should not be missed.