readingthroughtheages's review
3.0
I can see why this was on the NY Times Best Illustrated Books list. I loved the details in each illustration. The story will appeal to younger readers.
jessalynn_librarian's review
4.0
A cute story with illustrations that just beg to be looked at again and again. Also, I love Maria's modern-but-cozy house and wouldn't mind moving in. Fabulous detail, often with pages split horizontally to show both Maria and Mouse Mouse's worlds. They often mirror each other, and it's fun to spot the similarities and differences (a classic painting reproduced in Maria's house, a picture from a Beatrix Potter book in Mouse Mouse's).
(Illustrations rendered in pen-and-ink, watercolor and gouache.)
(Illustrations rendered in pen-and-ink, watercolor and gouache.)
jennybeastie's review against another edition
3.0
Sweet bedtime adventure, with intricate illustrations that appeal to my borrowers-loving heart.
libscote's review against another edition
3.0
A cute parallel story of mice and humans that befriend each other.
ecstaticlistening's review against another edition
4.0
I would like to live in this house very much.
saragrochowski's review against another edition
4.0
When secret and unlikely friends Maria and Mouse Mouse both discover their mothers aren't there to tuck them in, they set off on a parallel search to find them. Readers will explore upstairs with Maria and downstairs with Mouse Mouse until their independent searches bring the two friends together for a climactic surprise! The downstairs world of Mouse Mouse in comparison to Maria's life upstairs will enchant young readers and amuse adults, while the deceptively simple story imparts a lesson about friendship between two very different girls.
beecheralyson's review against another edition
4.0
Sweet story. I need to check out the companion book.
tashrow's review
5.0
I am so pleased to see a follow-up story to Mary and the Mouse, The Mouse and Mary! This new book focuses on the daughters of Mary and Mouse. Maria is a little girl who has a mouse for a best friend named Mouse Mouse. The two of them never reveal to anyone else that they know one another because otherwise the mice would either be driven off or have to move. The two girls live parallel lives, getting ready for bed in the same way and both calling for their mothers at the same time. But both mothers are nowhere to be found! The search is on by both girl and mouse to figure out where their mothers have gone. They both look all over their homes, check with their fathers, and ask their siblings. Nothing. Then they notice a light on in the shed and both head directly for it. And if you read the first book, you will know exactly who they will find in the shed.
Donofrio has written a clever parallel story that reveals the lives of two friends. The upstairs downstairs aspect of the book has incredible appeal as does the wee details of mouse life. There are little touches throughout the book that make the text charming and lovely. Her pacing is also adept and keeps the entire book moving along and yet completely appropriate for bedtime reading.
So much charm and style comes from the illustrations. I particularly enjoy looking closely at the world of the mice created from borrowed items from the human home. These little touches truly create a world under the floor that any reader would love to discover or live in themselves. The illustrations are rich with color and details, worthy of lingering over when you aren’t quite ready for lights out.
Beautifully written and lovingly illustrated, this book is a suitable companion to the first. They both stand alone fully on their own, but I’d think that anyone finding out there was another in the series would want to read them both, probably back to back. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
Donofrio has written a clever parallel story that reveals the lives of two friends. The upstairs downstairs aspect of the book has incredible appeal as does the wee details of mouse life. There are little touches throughout the book that make the text charming and lovely. Her pacing is also adept and keeps the entire book moving along and yet completely appropriate for bedtime reading.
So much charm and style comes from the illustrations. I particularly enjoy looking closely at the world of the mice created from borrowed items from the human home. These little touches truly create a world under the floor that any reader would love to discover or live in themselves. The illustrations are rich with color and details, worthy of lingering over when you aren’t quite ready for lights out.
Beautifully written and lovingly illustrated, this book is a suitable companion to the first. They both stand alone fully on their own, but I’d think that anyone finding out there was another in the series would want to read them both, probably back to back. Appropriate for ages 3-5.
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