The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail

Secrets at Sea #2

by Richard Peck, Kelly Murphy (Illustrator)

Newbery Award-winning author Richard Peck is at his very best in this fast-paced mystery adventure. Fans of The Tale of Desperaux, A Little Princess, and Stuart Little will all be captivated by this memorable story of a lovable orphan mouse on an amazing quest.

The smallest mouse in London’s Royal Mews is such a little mystery that he hasn't even a name. And who were his parents? His Aunt Marigold, Head Needlemouse, sews him a uniform and sends him off to be educated at the Royal Mews Mouse Academy. There he's called "Mouse Minor" (though it's not quite a name), and he doesn't make a success of school. Soon he's running for his life, looking high and low through the grand precincts of Buckingham Palace to find out who he is and who he might become.

Queen Victoria ought to be able to help him, if she can communicate with mice. She is all-seeing, after all, and her powers are unexplainable. But from her, Mouse Minor learns only that you do not get all your answers from the first asking. And so his voyage of self-discovery takes him onward, to strange and wonderful places.

Genres: Fantasy, Middle Grade, Fiction, Animals, Childrens, Historical Fiction, Adventure

240 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2013

About the author

Richard Peck was an American novelist known for his prolific contributions to modern young adult literature. He was awarded the Newbery Medal in 2001 for his novel A Year Down Yonder. For his cumulative contribution to young-adult literature, he received the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association in 1990.

Reviews

[Mari Anne · Rating 1 out of 5]

I should have known better than to pick this one up as I didn't particularly enjoy Peck's last one "Secrets at Sea". I was drawn in though, by the cute title and the adorable cover. After that, it was all down hill. Peck writes in a very stilted and old fashioned manner, which doesn't lend itself well to children's lit. I am not sure why his books are so highly acclaimed as I find them slow and dry. I only got about 30 pages into this one, so maybe it improves later on but I just wasn't willing to stick around to find out.

[Barbara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charming little story from one of my favorite children's authors, Richard Peck. If you enjoyed "Stewart Little" and " The Cheshire Cheese Cat" you will certainly want to read about Mouse Minor and his quest to discover his true identity.

"For every job a human holds, there is a mouse with the same job, and doing it better." This is the Great Truth and the central secret of the British Empire. But there is more to this secret than even Mouse Minor suspects.

[Cheryl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ok, that was interesting. Could be read straight, as an especially well-written mouse adventure, a sort of a companion to The Mouse and the Motorcycle. Could also be read with special attention to the extra element of fantasy and political metaphor, as it seems to resemble what I understand of Redwall.

I do recommend the book for folks who like that sort of thing.

It's a quick read, with just enough full-page illustrations to show off Kelly Murphy's graceful talent but not enough to make a child feel he's reading a 'baby book.'

Don't read on if you want to read it with absolute no more expectation.

What follows below is a particular interpretation, which may flavor your appreciation of the story. Actual spoilers will be concealed, but I want to share my thoughts openly... so stop here if you want to make up your own mind, from scratch, about the book, as you read it.

So... the thing is, I found myself spontaneously enjoying it as a a satire. A satire of Anglophiles, and of reverence for royalty, and of other mouse adventures. And of stories of the ordinary but noble child who is discovered to be of blue blood, like Little Lord Fauntleroy. And of fantasy in general, and of court intrigue motifs, and of all those stories about mice, Littles, Borrowers, and other hidden populations that an innocent child can hope to catch a glimpse of, so long as she feels lucky and believes herself observant.

"I think that you'll find that all the best teachers are old bats." "It was no nightmare. It was every bit as real as the rest of this story."

[Jacki]

I gave up on this story. The hero didn't have any qualities I liked and was often a pugilistic jerk, so I abandoned ship. I didn't buy some of the story elements, anyway. For example, the mice in the story wear clothing, but they don't want humans to know, so they take off their clothes if they might be seen by a human. Wearing clothing suggests either a need for protection from the elements or a desire for modesty. A mouse has a fur coat to protect it from the weather, and clearly they're not concerned about nudity if they shuck everything before running into the kitchen to pilfer. Why would they possibly be wearing clothing? Also, this idea that all human careers have equivalent mouse careers. Why would mouse society be exactly like human society? And why is Queen Victoria the queen of the mice if they have equivalent positions for everything else? I know I would have been way into this when I was a child, but as an adult, I couldn't get into it.

[Liana Kirkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic! This was a delightful story (I'll spare you the plot re-cap as it's already repeated numerous times on this page), and I loved the relaxing pace of this story, one adults and children alike will find a pleasure to read or have read to them. It doesn't feature high-tech intrigue, smash-'em up car chases, or moral conflict - all of the things that seem to characterize other current writings, but rather, it is a gentle story that I would class as truly family-friendly. Written with enough punnery and tongue-in-cheek humour, (most) adults will catch the subtle irony while children will enjoy the story for the fantasy it is. Need a bed-time saga to read to young ones? Need a family audiobook for a car-trip? I would definitely recommend this one. In fact, I originally borrowed it from the library, but will be purchasing my own copy for my home library.

[Sherry · Rating 3 out of 5]

On a personal level, I just loved this book and it totally deserves five stars for literary merit. I always have been a sucker for mouse stories and animal fiction, and that, combined with Richard Peck's absolute mastery of prose, made this a superbly enjoyable read! I laughed outright so many times -- at little jokes between author and reader, at the perfectly depicted dialects of the different animal characters (I had great fun reading these aloud to myself - yes, I'm a dork...), at so many little details easily missed by children but utterly delightful to adults. But therein lies the problem and the reason I only gave this wonderful book 3 stars. This is a children's book, but the very audience it is written for will most likely be the first to abandon it. It's just too sophisticated in both vocabulary and (mostly) the English royalty historical content. I can think of only a handful of children I've known over the years who could have (and would have) stuck this book out to the end. I will share it with my daughter, and I'll recommend it as a read-aloud to a few teachers that I think would give this story its due, but I'm afraid this one will spend a lot of time on the shelves.

[Jester · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading Secrets at Sea, I was eager to read more of Richard Peck's work. A quarter of the way into the book, I wanted to put it down but kept reading in the hope it would get exciting. The beginning promised self-discovery, bravery, and adventure.

The characters the readers encounter don't seem necessary to our protagonist's journey, with the exception of the Queen and Aunt Marigold.

The story lacks excitement, which I was expecting. The entire story felt like learning about the society and importance of mice, rather than the protagonist's adventure.

I was expecting this mouse to come across some inspirational characters with advice for him, and/or notorious characters that push the protagonist to discover his true self. I was very disappointed. While reading this book, I kept remembering The Tale of Despereaux, which also involves a mouse and royalty. I wanted this book to be better or equally as adventure-filled and exciting, but found myself wanting to stop reading. Overall, this book was okay, but it could have been better.

[Brenda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found the beginning of the story a little slow going what with describing The Royal Mews (next door to Buckingham Palace) where "Mouse Minor," the guy with the question mark tail lives and explaining why he has no name. However, the story moves along more quickly when Mouse Minor commits the worst two crimes a mouse can make and then flees to try and find the Queen to see if she can tell him who he is and what his future has in store. I'm just not sure if most readers will wait til the middle of the book for this, but it really is worth it. Overall, I found the story very cute and it fits into the other stories that I've read about mice. The illustrations in The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail are very nicely detailed but I found that I enjoyed the ones that were a full color page much better then the ones which were in blue and white tones and was wishing there were more color ones included.

[Great Books · Rating 4 out of 5]

A tiny, nameless mouse flees his cozy home in London's Royal Mews after causing trouble and finds himself in Buckingham Palace where humans and mice alike are abuzz with plans for Queen Victoria's Jubilation ceremony. Here, he discovers secrets about his past on a voyage of self-discovery that will most certainly change the way his fellow mice view him. Fans of A Tale of Despereaux, animal fiction and fairy tales will enjoy this sweet tale from Newbery award-winning author, Richard Peck. Reviewer #8

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute and clean, but for some reason I couldn't stay interested in the story. It just wasn't engaging enough or maybe it was the wording? Its pacing was pretty slow and I often found my mind drifting as I listened to the audio book. The narration was fine, I just think this is one of those books that would make a better read if simply read to oneself.

[Laura Bone · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

This was cute. It reminded me of my kid days of reading other rodent-lit (e.g., The Mouse and the Motorcycle, The Rats of NIMH, The Tale of Despereaux, Stuart Little, Poppy etc.).

I'm glad I randomly purchased it at a library book sale event (where they are trying to offload books for very cheap).

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

One Sentence Review: A nice little discovering-who-you-are story with a twist (no pun intended) at the end.

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a cute middle grade book.

[Alabama Rose]

This is one of the stories I would've loved if I read when I was younger. But I read it now, and it was cute but not something I'd reread.

[Barb Middleton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rowan Samuel Ward. My grandson was born today! I'd swing this computer around my head like a lasso I'm so excited, but instead I'll rein in and control myself (particularly since it is not even my computer.) Rowan Samuel Ward. A strong name. "Blimey, 'e is a 'andsome baby, dat 'e is." Names are chain-linked to the theme of self-identity with deep roots in children's literature and common to coming-of-age stories. Richard Peck's tale involves a mouse narrator in search of his identity that goes on an adventure where he learns to embrace his individuality.

The mouse narrator has no name in this book. His tail is a question mark symbolizing his bucketful of constant questions he peppers his Aunt Marigold and other adults with on a daily basis. Marigold's typical response to him is some saying, "Ask no questions and you'll be told no lies" or her mantra, "Nameless is Blameless." Blameless this mouse is, but he still needs a name when he goes to the Royal Mews Mouse Academy for the first time. His school community names him, Mouse Minor, a condescending name that is a reminder of his insignificance, small size, and uncertain heritage. As a bully target, he spends more time fighting than learning it seems. When he accidentally breaks the cardinal rule of being seen in his school uniform by a human, Queen Victoria's granddaughter, he runs away in disgrace.

His adventure leads him from a cat's tail to a horse's ear to the Yeomice Guard. Convinced that Queen Victoria has magical abilities, he seeks her out to help him figure out who he is inspite of everyone telling him it is impossible to see the Queen. Set during the 1897 Diamond Jubilee in London, the Victorian flavor is found in the unique tone of voice in the characters. Mouse Minor's speech sounds a bit formal, while the servants dropped their "h"s in most sentences, and the hysterical bat bards sing in rhymes using speech that turns "w"s into "v"s such as, "Vat are dem black bits?" and has fun slang such as "blimey 'oo." Part one had a nice adventure. Part two I nodded to sleep. Part three I laughed out loud and loved how the author pulled the story together with some surprise twists.

Richard Peck's writing craft shows his command of the language. While the text has quite a few high vocabulary words the beautiful illustrations and repetition are helpful in determining some definitions. Some will need to be looked up. A favorite word, "susurrate" is used many times; others such as "convivial," "bilious," "accession," should give you an idea of what lies in store or what lies in story. The high vocabulary and cockney accents are hilarious, but might trip some readers up. This 200 page book would be a good read aloud. The author's play on words add humor along with the jabs at odd royalty traditions.

Mouse Minor asks "Who am I?" throughout the story which set me off like a hyperlink onto the concept of self-identity in stories. I've wasted quite a bit of time looking at scholarly articles on it. And when I did start hyperlinking from "looking glass self" to "self-categorization theory" to "Michelangelo phenomenon" I was completely confused. However, it did make me think about how novels can show an individual's pursuit of self-identity as well as societial influence on that identity. While on the one hand Mouse Minor is learning to embrace his individuality, he is also learning to conform to the structure of the mouse society that mirrors English society and culture exactly. At the end of the story he has found his place within his society and grown in confidence. I can't help but think of my new grandson, Rowan. "Who will he be?"

[Carol Royce Owen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee is days away, and a little mouse is caught up in the buzz and preparations for the great event. What the reader, obviously humans, don't know is that for every human doing their job, there is a mouse nearby doing it better. So every mouse in the Royal Mews is pressed into activity to prepare for the big event. This little mouse, though, has only one job, and that is to go to school, a task which he hates, as he is the victim of bullying not only from huge classmates but also from his teacher. He is bullied because of his size but also because he has no name (at school he is called Mouse Minor), and a lack of a past.

Raised by his Aunt Marigold, head Royal seamstress, he knows nothing about his father and only that his mother died. But who were they, and why isn't he told the truth about them? When he breaks two big rules just a few days before the Diamond Jubilee, skipping school to avoid two bullies that want to beat him up, and showing himself in clothing to a princess, causing her to fall off her horse, he is certain there will be serious repercussions. Afraid to return home he embarks on adventures that take him outside of the Royal Mews and into the court of Buckingham Palace where the Queen awaits her Diamond Jubilee. Realizing this Mouse Minor makes it his goal to get to Queen Victoria somehow, certain she alone can tell him the truth about his place in the world.

Those who liked Tale of Despereaux will like this story. Some similarities, but not similar enough to ruin this story. Richard Peck delights with his use of vocabulary and repetitive language that appears through the story.

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed Peck’s first mouse characters in Secrets at Sea, so I looked forward to meeting more whiskered characters in this new book. The two books are unrelated except for Peck’s elaborate mouse society which has the same charm as The Borrowers or The Littles. In this book, we meet a little mouse who really doesn’t even have a name. He has no idea where he came from, but he is now cared for by his Aunt Marigold who is the Head Needlemouse in the Royal Mews in London. He is sent to school at the Royal Mews Mouse Academy, where he is quickly bullied by bigger mice. Finally, he ruins all of his prospects by appearing in front of a human wearing clothing. Now he has to find his own way, his destiny and his past.

Peck weaves a fine adventure in this book. The romp of mishaps and close scrapes make for fun reading as does the mystery of this little mouse’s past. Add to that the appeal of being near royalty, even speaking directly with Queen Victoria herself, and you have a book where you never know what is going to happen next.

The writing is skilled and detailed. Peck offers action enough for any book but also builds a wonderful second, shadow society with the mice too. There is just enough detail to tantalize and clearly visualize the world, but not so much that the story slows. In fact, the pacing here is superb.

Fans of Stuart Little and The Borrowers will enjoy discovering life in the Royal Mews and a little nameless mouse with a big destiny. Appropriate for ages 7-10.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nameless and orphaned young mouse living in the mews of Queen Victoria's palace has a tail in the form of a question mark, and lots of questions about where he came from. When he accidentally embarks on a wild adventure through the palace and its grounds--fleeing school bullies who've sworn to kill him (he's tiny but mouthy and usually fights back), he meets many animals he doesn't expect, and gets his answers in ways he certainly doesn't expect.

What I enjoyed most about this was the wonderful descriptions of the palace and its grounds, and all the pomp and circumstance of the mouse court and mouse world living alongside the human one. Peck has clearly done a lot of research, and a lot of thinking about how human activities would play out in the animal world. I didn't love the reality of Mouse Minor's (as he's called at school) school life, which reflected the reality of upper class Victorian boys' schools, in which bullying was ignored and blame fell on the victims, all with the aim of toughening the boys up. I mean, those bullies were serious about killing Mouse, and yet he got blamed for what happened when he ran away to save his life. Not cricket, in my book. Other than that, I'm not sure why I didn't love the book more; it was quirky and clever (though the ending predictable), and I did love the descriptions. Oh well!

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perfectly competent animal-historical fiction, with more emphasis on the animal and less on the history.

Our hero is at times "Nameless", "Runt" or "Mouse Minor", a small mouse of unknown parentage raised in the Royal Mews at Buckingham Palace. He has an ordinary mouse life, albeit one filled with beatings by larger mice (in part because while small of stature, he's large of mouth). One day it gets to be too much and he runs away and there the fun begins. He's seen by a Princess of the Realm, is befriended by a Peg, a horse, becomes a Yeomouse of the Guard and kidnapped (mousenapped?) by bats. And that's only part of the two day trek from "Nameless" to... no, I won't spoil this.

More of the history (of the Palace, or the era, which is Victorian) would have been nice but the target audience won't miss any of that.

ARC provided by publisher.

[Kerry Johnson · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read The Mouse with the Question Mark Tail with my two boys over a period of a week or so. While we wanted to love the story, and did make it through, I struggled verbalizing the prose. It was stilted, the sentences odd and nonsensical. Chunks of old-fashioned sayings dotted the pages, some funny, some falling flat because it made no sense to my boys and seemed out of place.

I believe the story would've been better had I just read it myself, but reading it out loud--I fumbled my way through, which was frustrating. And I read out loud, a LOT.

The general story is cute, the main character a bumbling little mouse fellow who grows on you. The ending was fun and moderately surprising, though parts were so drawn out my boys lost interest.

It's not our favorite read-aloud book, but is probably best for just reading silently to yourself.

[Kim McGee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet read about a little mouse without a name who has very strong ties to Queen Victoria. I don't want to be a spoiler but you will enjoy this jaunt around jolly old London aboard a bat, horse's ear, owl and many other means of transportation not usually offered to humans. Like all of Richard Peck's books for kids, the characters are lovable and quirky. This would be the perfect companion to The Cheshire Cheese Cat and a great way for kids to get a feel for Queen Victoria's London in all its glory.

[Jennifer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like Richard Peck and I love children's books about mice, so I was excited to see this one. The story is cute and the illustrations are great, and I liked how he used language and especially alliteration to give the mouse's voice some character and charm. It's not my favorite book about a mouse (sorry--but I read The Mouse and the Motorcycle over and over as a kid), but it's still a nice little book to share.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Author Richard Peck continues his winning streak of engaging kid's fiction with this adventure filled romp through the undiscovered back halls and basements of Queen Victoria's castle. A misfit mouse bent on self-discovery bounds from stable to kitchen, including a rare visit with the human queen herself. An upper elementary student with a fondness for history would be delighted with this tale featuring a mouse's unusual tail.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a delightfully adventurous romp through Buckingham Palace and the Mews with Minor Mouse, an orphan mouse with a question mark tail, who wonders where he came from. Readers who enjoyed The Tale of Despereaux by Kate DiCamillo, or The Mr. and Mrs. Bunny series by Polly Horvath, will love this beautifully illustrated tale, full of tidbits of British history.

[Kristin · Rating 1 out of 5]

I did not care for this book. I felt like it was trying to be like the Tale of Despereaux but fell flat. I could not connect with the main character and found myself not caring what happened to him. In fact, he came across a little cocky. Occasionally something interesting happened in the book, but would quickly go back to losing my interest.

[Kasper · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.5 stars. This is the only Richard Peck book that I did not thoroughly enjoy. The story felt dry and slow and just did not intrigue me in any way. I couldn't wait to be finished with it, which took entirely too long.

[Melanie Kilsby · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oh, how I loved this book!
Some of the sentence structures were hard to understand but, the overall story line was great!
My kids absolutely loved this book as well. However, one down fall was the mention of smoking/drinking slightly...

Still...would read it again :D

[Abigail F · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the most adorable books I've read in awhile. Great for both children and children-at-heart, especially those who love anything to do with England and/or mice. Lots of great wordplay and a creatively imagined hidden world. The story and storytelling have a really classic feel.

[Shauna · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't like this book as much as I would have hoped, considering how much I have enjoyed other books by this author. However, I did rather like the part where our little mouse has a conversation with Queen Victoria, or rather where Queen Victoria has a conversation with our mouse.

[Tracey · Rating 2 out of 5]

nice children's read-aloud chapter book (2nd-5th grades?); very straight-forward story, some rarer vocabulary thrown in.