Ages 4-7. Young Alexander lives beneath the floor of a house with his mouse family. Life is good for the mouse family--except for the presence of Rats, the cat upstairs, who bit off Father Mouse's tail. One night, inspired by Mighty Bruno, bear superhero, Alexander whips up a bear costume from his mother's fur coat and sneaks up to gather food. In a scene that is both humorous and frightening, Rats captures Alexander--mistaking him for one of her kittens--and, like children following the story, becomes quite smitten with the mouse in disguise. De Beer's illustrations are superb. He creates atmospheric underground scenes with a subdued palette, and uses shadows very effectively throughout the book to build suspense. This engaging story, with a lovable protagonist and a villain who turns out to be a softhearted pussycat, will captivate youngsters.
Lauren PetersonCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
From School Library Journal
Kindergarten-Grade 3-Alexander dreams of a life as full of adventure as that of his favorite comic-book hero, Mighty Bruno. When there is no food left to eat, the young mouse must try to outwit the house cat, Rats, to save his family. He sews a bear costume out of his mother's fur coat and bravely ventures upstairs. Rats quickly catches Alexander by the scruff of his bear suit, but instead of eating him, she plunks him down with her kittens and adopts him. Dividing his time between his mouse and cat families provides Alexander with the excitement he craves. As the ending reveals, "Alexander wasn't really fooling Rats.-She knew very well that he was a mouse, but she had come to love him." De Beer's illustrations are full of witty details; children will be particularly amused by the sight of Alexander's pointy nose sticking out from his ill-fitting costume. A fun read-aloud title with lots of child appeal.
Linda Ludke, London Public Library, Ontario, Canada Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.