Minnikin, Midgie, and Moppet: A Mouse Story

by Adelaide Holl

Book Overview

Three mice leave their mother and comfortable home in the meadow to find good food and adventure. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0307123626
• ISBN13: 9780307123626
• Release Date: August 1985
• Publisher: Golden Press
• Length: 47 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Age Range: 4 to 8 years
• Grade Range: Preschool to Grade 3

Customer Reviews

The best little known picture book on the block

Following deeply in the footsteps on Beatrix Potter, the tale of "Minnikin, Midgie, and Moppet" is a delightful story from around 1977. I was read this book repeatedly as a child and the images in it made a deep deep impression on my young moldable little brain. A classic tale of letting one's children lead their own lives (and about seeing the world a little) was much beloved by a much younger me. Better still, I think it really is the primary reason why I love autumn so much. No book better captures the scents, smells, and crisp fall feeling than this wonderful (and out of print) picture book. Mother Mouse lives beneath the roots of an old oak tree with her three children, Minnikin, Midgie, and Moppet. The children dream of someday living in homes of their own. Minnikin imagines he will live in a farmer's barn. Midgie dreams of a home by the markets. Moppet decides to someday become a city mouse and live in a city apartment. When the time comes to leave, Mother Mouse decides to visit each of her children after they establish their new homes. As she goes to each child, Mother Mouse finds their living situations strange and scary. By the end, however, she realizes that every home has its attractions and perils. And eventually the children return to the meadow to take care of their mother, wed, and raise their own mouse families in the roots of the old oak tree.The story is quite interesting in its narrative and morals. As far as I can determine, the book is basically saying that while it is well and good for the young to traipse off to exciting and dangerous places while they've their youth, when it comes to settling down it's nicest to find a safe meadow where you can raise a family and take care of your mother. Not your usual pre-school plot, by far. I love how Adelaide Holl has chosen to describe scenes in this story. The dialogue is a little formal but it never sounds forced or strained. Accompanying the tale are Priscilla Hillman's masterful illustrations. These are what really stuck with me over the years. They contain some of the most realistic mice I've ever seen, albeit wearing dresses and overalls. Their big black pupil-less eyes and quick furry noses are just adorable. While the mice do not usually show much in the way of expression, whenever they close their eyes in sleep or joy you can see just a hint of a smile curling at the edges of their mouths. But it's food and the seasons that are done best here. I remembered well the spicy sausages and delicate gourmet cheeses. The huge orange pumpkins and ripe round apples. But best of all are Mother Mouse's trips through the countryside. Hillman has perfectly captured the craggy tattered elements of the fall. The grey skies that at any moment can open up into rain and the warm comfort of a bed when you're scared. "Minnikin, Midgie, and Moppet" is one of the best little known picture books out there. Woefully out of print, but delightful in both story and execution this is a tale to be told