The School Mouse - Softcover

Dick King-Smith was born and raised in Gloucestershire, England, surrounded by pet animals. After twenty years as a farmer, he turned to teaching and then to writing children's books. Dick wrote mostly about animals: farmyard fantasy, as he likes to call it, often about pigs, his special favorites. He enjoyed writing for children, meeting the children who read his books, and knowing that they get enjoyment from what he does. Among his well-loved books are Babe: The Gallant Pig, which was made into a major motion picture and was nominated for an Academy Award.

Kindergarten-Grade 4?Charming and satisfying, this story should appeal to many small folks moving from easy readers to chapter books. From a rumpled, rather inept father mouse and a very sharp mother mouse whose efficiency is a bit abrasive to our heroine Flora, each tiny character is engaging. Flora decides early in life to take advantage of her environment. From a safe hiding spot in her first-grade classroom home, she learns to read along with the children. When her siblings go off to make their way in the world, she continues her education. Her acquired skills allow her to warn her family when poison is placed in the school after a careless brother leaves mouse droppings on the head mistress's class register. She meets a handsome white mouse, survives a suitable number of harrowing experiences, and saves her family yet again after they move to an unsafe haystack. Fisher's black-and-white sketches aptly capture the characters' essential mouseness while illuminating their slightly anthropomorphic individuality. King-Smith's many fans, and those brought to the shelves by the movie Babe, won't be disappointed by this well-crafted tale.?Jody McCoy, Casady School, Oklahoma City
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.