The King, the Mice and the Cheese

by Nancy Gurney, Eric Gurney

A king runs into the trouble when he tries to protect his cheese from the palace mice.

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Fiction, Animals, Young Adult, Classics, Storytime

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1965

Reviews

[Rod Brown · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fine demonstration of unintended consequences -- how some solutions are as bad or worse than the problem they were intended to solve.

Someone get this book to Donald Trump immediately!

And the book itself is a victim of unintended consequences. As an adult I enjoyed reading this children's book to my daughter when she was young, but she didn't like it or the lesson imparted. The authors probably lost her when they drove the dogs away . . .

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is pure, classic literature! I was reminded of this book because I'm going to do read aloud with Rosie's class. When I read this to Caroline's group, I asked what they thought about everyone smelling the cheese deeply..... After some of their answers, I passed around 4 or 5 containers with different smelly cheeses. It was a blast!

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

A friend recommended this as one of his favorite books as a kid, and I can definitely see why kids would have a lot of fun with it. The story is repetitive and funny, and kids can anticipate which animal will drive out the current unwanted guest. The drawings are very cartoony (almost Disney-looking to me), and each page only has a couple of contrasting colors with a lot of white space, so very small children could enjoy the pictures without reading the text. Older kids will love the antics that each animal gets into in each picture, and there is a lesson of sharing and manners at the end.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Omg, my inner child just loves this! So funny! And the satire about the 'wise men' is spot-on. The pictures, oh my, look at the lion diving in the moat (?), the elephant in the fountain, the individuality of the mice, everyone's expressions, the different kinds of cheeses.... And of course the ending is perfect, a good lesson for all of us (including our politicians). It may be an 'easy reader' but it really is much more than that.

[Robby Rob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've read this book dozens if not hundreds of times to my kids. They love it because its funny and for me it's fun to read. They get to learn about which animals are enemies of which and have some fun doing it. I think this book was a yard sale, but it's been one of their favorites for the past couple of years. My 7 year old is starting to outgrow it, but my 4 year old still loves it. The book has seen some mileage from our family and is beginning to fall apart. I may have to pick up another copy soon.

[Stacy Natal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dante-

It was a funny book.

Alexia-

It was a fun book and the author was creative to make up all those animals.

Mommy-

A good reminder that compromise is often the best solution to the problem.

[Vicki · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have used this book for years as a read aloud to the local kindergarteners. The book seems to have been around for forever and the condition of our library book shows it. The story seems to hold the attention of the children and it's great to hear there guesses as the story unfolds.

[Miss Pippi the Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

I purchased my own copy because it's such a fun story to share. I also love the illustrations. It's a silly predictable tale, but oh so enjoyable for children as well as adults.

2025 storytime theme: Storytime After Dark - Family Literacy Month

Reviewed from a personal copy.

[Chance Hansen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think of this book as a certain jewel. I grew up reading it and I still find it as a really fun book.
Just look at this book cover and you will pretty much know what a the drama is about. While I'm talking about the cover you The art design of the King, cheese, and mice is what you get on the inside. (Unlike a lot of other books out there.)
The moral to the story is quite smart as well. (I'm getting to that though.) It's written in a repetitive way all the while becoming more and more extreme in consequences. The speed of the book is perfect. It doesn't feel cut short.
I could talk about the art all day. Every character is bursting with personality. Allow me to direct you to the lion facing you on page 39. Simply perfect and there are a lot of great choices used. From cover to cover and even the inside covers look great. (No wonder Dr. Seuss added this book to his collection.)

[Megan Phillips · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book begins with mice smelling and then eating cheese, so it could be used as a senses book. Students could smell the cheese in their classroom and then predict what they think it will taste like. The book could be used to enforce how our sense of smell can lead us to a certain type of food, since different types of food smell differently.

This book can be used to teach cause and effect. Every time an animal comes, it is then made to leave by bringing in another animal. There is a cause and effect for each animal that comes into the palace.

I would use this book with Kindergarten or 1st grade.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

A cute enough story, but nothing great.

There is a repetitive pattern to the story and one that lends itself to use for story prediction. It's a straightforward story about a king who loves cheese. The cheese attracts mice. The king does not want to live with mice so he asks the wise men to get rid of them. That begins a revolving pattern that creates more and more problems for the king. But like all stories, this story has a resolution . . . probably not one that the reader would have thought of at the beginning of the story.

[Anastasia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite of the Beginner Books I remember from my childhood: a King with a particular fondness for cheese finds his palace overrun by mice, and eventually has to come to a truce with them after he realizes there's no good way to get rid of them. The mice are adorable and the limited color pallete works beautifully...Pixar's Ratatouille took a page from this one in a way.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a fun book with great illustrations. A king's castle is plagued with mice. What's to be done? Bring in a load of cats. The cats get rid of the mice, but now there are cats everywhere. What's to be done? Kids love this step-by-step story that eventually comes full circle.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This story, while very predictable, was entertaining for the kids. They liked it enough to pay attention, and that says a lot. Recommended.

[Melody · Rating 4 out of 5]

:-) Cheeseeeeee!!!

(ps The king needs the piper har har)

[Bailey Marissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

A story about a king trying to find balance.

[Pam · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this one!

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun story about a king (a white king in India...lol, okay) who loves cheese (I'd hate to sleep next to that guy). Because he likes cheese his palace is quickly infested with mice and these mice have no manners. So the king calls (wait for it) on the three wise men to help him solve this terrible predicament. The wise men always have a fix to the problem. the mice are gone due to bringing in cats, but then the cats run amuck and the issues and solutions persist. I really enjoyed this story. I guess it's out of print for obvious reasons, but the story remains fun and quick-paced. My rating - 4/5

[Holly Stone]

This is a cute short beginner reader for young children just learning to read or for children of all ages to read A King has a big problem there are MICE in his castle eating ALL of his cheese he asks his wise advisors what to do and they come up with a lot of solutions which all seem to be worse that the one before. What will the King decide to do?

[Pam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Circular story. The king wants to get rid of the mice so his advisors bring in cats. Next dogs, etc. Eventually the mice chase off the elephants. They come to an agreement with the king and all get along.

[Orion Kopf · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for cheese fans

[Sekeres · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent example of unintended consequences

[Kate Matheis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great story. Kids will love the silly solutions the king has. Adults will appreciate the deeper meaning of the story. I like that the king actually learns in the end.

[Stephanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Purchased 2016, read to herself first time today. Rating A’s.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a cute book! I can’t believe I have never seen this story

[Amanda Almeida · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my fav kid's books. I always give it as a new baby gift!

[Connor Krawczynski · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book to teach children to get along with everybody.

[Sam · Rating 5 out of 5]

Childhood classic

[Ann · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kindness benefits everyone. This book shows a little way that the world can be a better place.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Moral of the story: accept the circle of life and learn to get along.