Asch, Frank, and Devin Asch. Mr. Maxwell's Mouse. Toronto: Kids Can, 2004. Print.
Summary
When Mr. Howard Maxwell receives a promotion at work, the cat forgoes his usual baked mouse at the Paw and Claw Restaurant and orders a raw mouse, no killing necessary. However, this turns out to be a mistake as the little mouse proves to be quite a handful.
My Impressions
I'm a cat person, but even I was cheering for the mouse in this clever story about brains besting brawn. I re-read the book several times just to look over the lavish illustrations, and I'm sure many young readers will do the same.
What Other Reviewers Said
This father/son team has concocted a delicious cat-and-mouse tale in which small outsmarts large. Every day, Mr. Howard Maxwell, a proper and pompous cat, orders baked mouse at the Paw and Claw Restaurant until the day of his promotion to Vice Manager of Efficiency Control, when he chooses a raw mouse for his entrée. When the dish arrives, the white mouse, reclining on rye toast, engages Mr. Maxwell in conversation (despite his mother's admonitions not to fraternize with his food), employing one rose after another to delay his demise: sprinkling salt, ordering a glass of wine, and requesting a prayer. The mouse deviously creates a catastrophe that enables him to escape and free all the other mice. The computer-generated art is stylishly elegant, dramatically colored in dark hues of slate and black, and handsomely designed with the text printed in white on black sidebars. Effective telescopic perspectives zoom closer as the mouse gets nearer to being eaten. Visually stunning, the period setting (1930s England?), captivating illustrations, and tongue-in-cheek dialogue create a delectable tail, er, tale of one-upmouseship to be savored. (Picture book. 5-8) (1)
K-Gr 3-- A clever game of cat and mouse is presented with delicious humor by this father/son team. Mr. Howard Maxwell, a dapper, pompous feline, lunches daily on baked mouse at the stuffy Paw and Claw restaurant, but today is different. Promoted to Vice Manager of Efficiency Control at Taylor, Bentwell and Nipson, he celebrates by ordering raw mouse instead. The entrée arrives "stretched out on a single slice of rye toast as if sunning itself on a sandy beach" and proceeds to engage its prospective nemesis in conversation, a wily plan to escape its fate. Mr. Maxwell falls into the trap, is tricked into cutting into his own tail, and the mouse gets away, freeing the other mice awaiting consumption and creating mayhem in the restaurant as well. Recuperating in the hospital, Mr. Maxwell receives a note that reads, in part: "I'm sure you would have taken similar measures had you found yourself in my position … I bear you no ill will and can only imagine that you feel the same." Readers will relish the formal language as a tongue-in-cheek counterpoint to a very funny, if macabre, story. In keeping with the black humor, dark but lush illustrations, rendered in Adobe Photoshop and Corel Painter, depict an Edwardian setting with the staid, elegant restaurant interior just begging to be thrown into chaos. White text against glossy black panels perfectly suits the mood, and atop his mustard brown toast the little white mouse glows with cleverness. A truly scrumptious treat. (2)
Suggested Activities
Play "Restaurant" with a twist. Have a box of animal masks; after picking a mask, the reader playing "Mr. Maxwell" has to order accordingly.
Other Citations
(1) "MR. MAXWELL'S MOUSE (Book)." Kirkus Reviews 72.16 (2004): 802. MAS Ultra - School Edition. EBSCO. Web. 30 Sept. 2010.
(2) Orlando, Marie. "Mr. Maxwell's Mouse (Book)." School Library Journal 50.9 (2004): 154. MasterFILE Premier. EBSCO. Web. 30 Sept. 2010.
No comments:
Post a Comment