The Kitten Who Thought He Was a Mouse

by Miriam Norton, Garth Williams (Illustrator)

WHEN A MOUSE family finds a helpless, homeless, newborn kitten, they decide to adopt him, name him Mickey, and raise him as one of their own . . . never telling him that he’s actually a cat!

Genres: Childrens, Picture Books, Cats, Classics, Fiction, Animals

40 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1951

Reviews

[Luisa Knight · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute little tale of a cat that is raised to think he’s a mouse. Kinda of reminds me of the movie Elf.

Illustrations done by the legendary Garth Williams!

Ages: 3 - 8

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

CUTE story.
I miss reading these stories to my kids.

[Christine Gueit · Rating 5 out of 5]

ce petit livre est un joli souvenir d'enfance

[Lu · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the story idea. The follow through was really cute.

The characters are mother, father, Lester and the 2 sisters. I do not like that the sisters do not have any names.

I like the illustrations. The way they drew the characters was adorable. I think it's cute that Father has suspenders and a corncob pipe.

I liked when they found him:

They knew by its mewing that the bundle must be a kitten, a lost kitten with no family and no name.
"Poor kitty," said the sisters.
"Let him stay with us," said Lester.
"But a cat!" said Mother Miggs.
"Why not?" said Father Miggs.

"We can bring him up to be a good mouse. He need never find out he is really a cat. You'll see - he'll be a good thing for this family."
-----

My favorite part was when he finds out he's not a mouse. :

"Am I really a cat?" he cried.
"Yes," said Mother Miggs sadly. And she told him the whole story of how he was adopted and brought up as a mouse. We loved you and wanted you to love us," she explained. "It was the only safe and fair way to bring you up."
----

Mickey can't really forget his upbringing, however. He takes an old rubber mouse of Peggy's to bed with him.

[J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here is a Golden Books paperback that explores a family of field mice who find an orphan kitten and choose to adopt him although Mother Miggs has misgivings on that. And so they raise the kitten to be a mouse while never telling him the truth about who he actually is until circumstances step in to correct the issue at hand.

Although the writing is simple and has no real difficult words to trip up young readers the story is rather a bit lengthy. As such I would most definitely set this story down to those who feel more comfortable reading a book that is slightly longer than normal.

And Garth Williams once more brings to Golden Books his signature illustrations of bright colors, whimsically dressed characters and details galore.

This is definitely another Golden Book classic and one that your family should be able to enjoy for entertainment or as a helping guide to discuss adoption within families.

[Heather Jo · Rating 3 out of 5]

megan summer reading 2017, lily summer reading 2017, children's book, picture book, little golden book, mice, kitten, adoption, love, family, toddler book, prek, kindergarten, first grade, second grade,

[Kylie Abecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

What an unusual little tale. Got a few giggles from the kids as I read it. Now they want a kitten and they want to name it mouse 🙄

[Everett · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty cute story. Simple and happy.

[Yasmeen . · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amusing story for kids and adults 😀

[C · Rating 5 out of 5]

A cleverly disguised life lesson or two.

[Heather McC · Rating 4 out of 5]

A sweet abandoned kitten is adopted by a family of mice and is very content...until he learns more about his personal history.

[Jess · Rating 4 out of 5]

A pretty cute golden book I do not remember from childhood first published in 1951. my daughter likes this one.

[Michael Medlen · Rating 3 out of 5]

im.nkt sure how I feel about this style of humor... 🤔

[Becky · Rating 4 out of 5]

First sentence: There were five Miggses: Mother and Father Miggs, and Lester and two sisters. They had, as field mice usually do, an outdoor nest for summer in an empty lot and an indoor nest for winter in a nearby house. They were very surprised one summer day to find a strange bundle in their nest, a small gray and black bundle of fur and ears and legs, with eyes not yet open. They knew by its mewing that the bundle must be a kitten, a lost kitten with no family and no name.

Premise/plot: Mickey is the kitten raised as a mouse. He goes many months thinking--believing--that he is a mouse. He's raised to fear cats, to watch for cats. So what happens when the human family discovers him, starts feeding him, and shows him--via a mirror--that he IS a cat. Can he overcome the confusion? Will he choose to live as a mouse or a cat? How will he feel about his adopted family?

My thoughts: I'll be honest the text was all over the place. I'm all for nature versus nurture. (Though it isn't always my favorite or best theme. My favorite of this type being LAMBERT THE SHEEPISH LION which is just pure awesomeness.) I loved, loved, loved the illustrations by Garth Williams. Garth Williams illustrating cute and adorable cats, kittens, and mice?!?! I'm there for it. I'd read it for his illustrations alone.

[Rachael · Rating 3 out of 5]

From this book I learned that kittens who think they are mice are absolutely adorable. It's true - check out the pictures for yourself. I also enjoyed how the story was actually an investigation into that age old question: nature or nurture? Once the kitten discovered he was not a mouse, would his instinctual mouse-hunting needs kick in, or would the love for mice that had been nurtured in him override said instincts? Because this is a kids book, the nurture side of the debate won out. You can't exactly have a cat slaughtering the mouse family that raised him in a Little Golden Book. I was saddened by the fact that he was no longer enough of a mouse to continue living with his mousey-family. He could only stop by for visits. So really, maybe nobody won. Actually, the more I think about it, the more depressing this story is. At least the illustrations were cute.

[Melle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Where do I begin with what's wrong with this book? The kitten that looks like a possum? That the mice family has Lester and unnamed sisters? (Yeah, I'm calling out that sexism.) The rigid outdated depictions of gender? Interspecies deception? The psychological abuse and Stockholm syndrome of a poor kitten by the family of mice that adopted him? The mysterious and sudden appearance of Paul and Peggy? On the surface, this looks like a cute little children's book, but, really, this is a book about deception.

Zelda seemed to like it. Weirdo.

[Dolly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a funny and sweet story about a family of mice who adopt a baby kitten and raise him to think that he is a mouse. The illustrations are wonderful and our girls really enjoyed the story.

The second time I read this book (26 June 2013), it was the one with ISBN 9780375848223, and while the story and illustrations were the same, the story lost a bit of its charm for me. Still, I am sure it will appeal to young children.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a cute story of a kitten who ends up living with a mouse family and is raised as a mouse. As with most adopted children soon the kitten begins to question who is.

This was a cute story and not one of the Golden Books that I had read as a child. My son enjoyed it though he thought that a few times the cat looked weird and I have to agree that it looked more like a possum than a cat at times. I'd read this again just because of my son's obsession with cats.

[Friend of Pixie · Rating 3 out of 5]

My 5-year-old son picked this out at a used book store. He's cat-crazy. I love illustrations by Garth Williams. Sweet story, not earthshaking, but my son liked it. A family of mice take in an abandoned new-born kitten and raise him to think he's a mouse. Eventually he figures out he's a cat, but he still visits and loves his mouse family.

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

You really can't go wrong with a Little Golden Book. This one was great, although it might make your child sympathetic to pests like mice. I like the lesson that children are taught certain things about life, for example where they fit or that parents have to match. In that way this is a great introduction to what family can look like and how to accept others who do not look like you.

[Shigi · Rating 2 out of 5]

Why do the sister mice NOT HAVE NAMES? No, we all know why. :( The story was also a little too pat but at least he didn't eat his mouse family in the end, I guess? It does have the unfortunate side effect of seeming like the mice are only using Mickey for their benefit.

[Gail · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute pictures

[Melinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

I remember reading and loving this book when I was little!! I looked on Amazon for a cover picture, and I know this book. Warm feelings!

[Joni · Rating 5 out of 5]

A kitten is found by a mouse family and raised as a mouse, but eventually discovers he is a cat and goes to live as a cat, while remembering his mouse family.

[Erroll Treslan · Rating 5 out of 5]

A timeless classic that should be a part of every child's library. Great stuff.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is totally one of the cutest stories ever!

[Jocelin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a cute little story. I think Looney Tunes made an animated short about this story. It is very similar and had the same theme to it. It a story about loving someone despite the differences.

[ariana 🫶 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cute story except I don't like that Lester has a name but his two sisters don't.

[Kayleighconroyymail.com]

This book I liked this is one good child book

[Sarah Romero · Rating 5 out of 5]

My family completely fell in love with the story. And you can't beat the names of the characters, especially the kitten in the title!