How Green Was My Mouse

by Dick King-Smith

Charlie Muffin breeds mice of every imaginable colour - except green, of course. Everyone knows that mice are never green. But his friend Merry Day really wants to see a green mouse and Charlie Muffin really wants to please Merry Day.

Genres: Childrens, Animals, Fiction

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Dick King-Smith was born and raised in Gloucestershire, England, surrounded by pet animals. After twenty years as a farmer, he turned to teaching and then to writing children's books.

Dick writes mostly about animals: farmyard fantasy, as he likes to call it, often about pigs, his special favorites. He enjoys writing for children, meeting the children who read his books, and knowing that they get enjoyment from what he does.

Among his well-loved books is Babe, The Gallant Pig, which was recently made into a major motion picture, and was nominated for an Academy Award.

Dick lived with his wife in a small 17th-century cottage, about three miles from the house where he was born.

Reviews

[Josh Caporale · Rating 3 out of 5]

How Green Was My Mouse follows a mouse farmer and taxidermist named Charlie Muffin, who is very inventive and somewhat set with his ways. He has bred mice of all different colors, including a shade of blue, not like the Crayola crayon, but more like the blue that is applied to cats (a more vibrant gray). Merry Day is a young woman that is interested in buying mice from Charlie, but she especially wants a green mouse. Charlie tries to do so and the story takes off from there.

This book was ultimately okay. There are moments in this book that are very delightful. Charlie is very innovative and know a lot about his subject matter, while Merry compliments him well with how determined, eager, and with her willingness to learn. While I appreciate this book's honesty, it brushes over and skips a lot of material. It is somewhat predictable in how it seems obvious that things are going to happen as they are and there is almost no suspense. It feels more like a waiting game. The mice and other animals seem to be tokens of Charlie's advancement and feel like plot devices rather than living beings with emotions. I am also challenged with where I would pinpoint the target audience's age range, for its complex, but yet it does seem to target younger readers.

If the younger readers approaching this book do not mind something predictable and they like cute little mice, this may be for them. Dick King Smith also wrote "The Sheep-Pig," which inspired the film "Babe." I am more inclined to pick up that book and read it with high hope that it bears greater quality.

[Rhea Nathan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I haven't read a lot of Dick King Smith but the plot to this book is crazy and I love it; a man who breeds mice and is a taxidermist, finds a wife by breeding her a green mouse after she keeps turning up at his house. Top tier nonsense, I remember my mum reading this to me as a child and not realising any of that stuff was unusual.

[HannaH Templeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book I've ever read

[Kumasama · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and original, interesting set-up and though can be a bit overly weird, it was still a fun ride.

This is my second read by this author, and looks like I have found a really good comfort zone with his children's books.

[Indah Threez Lestari · Rating 3 out of 5]

272 - 2017

[Ceri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Picked this up as one of the books me and my granny enjoyed together when I was wee. It was just as funny as I remembered 😊

[humblesoup · Rating 4 out of 5]

Adored this book when I was a young'un.

[Lulu · Rating 5 out of 5]

I looooooooooooove this booky-wook. It is mah favourite booky-wook. But it was sad when the cat ate the mouse. I cried for a week in the green room because I wanted to respect the green mouse. Long live the green mouse. Long live the green. Green tears down mah face. Sad. Sad. Sad. Sad.

"God save our grated cheese, long live our holey cheese, God save the cheese (dah dah dah dah) laaa laaa laaa laaaaaaaaaaaa la la laaaa laaa laaa laaaa la la laaaaaaaaaa la la laa laaaa laaaaaaaa la laaaaaaaaaaaaa God save the cheese." --Green Mouse