Mary and the Mouse, the Mouse and Mary

Mary and the Mouse #1

by Beverly Donofrio, Barbara McClintock (Illustrator)

MARY LIVED IN A BIG HOUSE with a very little mouse. The mouse lived in a little house inside of a very big house, with Mary. Even though Mary has been warned to stay away from mice—and Mouse has been warned to steer clear of people—the two can't help but peek at one another. Side by side, they grow up, go to college, get married, and have children of their own—Maria and MouseMouse. And then one day, Maria and MouseMouse do something surprising . . . something their parents never did. They actually come nose-to-nose and speak to one another!

Genres: Picture Books, Childrens, Friendship, Animals, Storytime, Fiction

32 pages, Hardcover

First published August 28, 2007

About the author

Beverly Donofrio is an author most noted for writing Riding in Cars with Boys, an autobiographical account of her life. The book was made into a movie with the same title and starred Drew Barrymore as Donofrio.

Her second memoir, Looking for Mary, or the Blessed Mother and Me, is about the Virgin Mary, faith and her own life as a mother.

Donofrio's father is of Sicilian descent and her mother is an Italian-American. Donofrio lives in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, where she is a founder of San Miguel Workshops. Her first children's book was released in 2007 by Random House.

Reviews

[Abigail]

It's another picture-book triumph for Barbara McClintock (and Beverly Donofrio, of course)! As its name suggests, Mary and the Mouse, The Mouse and Mary features a dual narrative, one in which a little girl named Mary, and a little mouse living in Mary's home, grow up side by side. Becoming aware of each other quite by accident, the two develop a fond but distant friendship, forced to create little "accidents" in order to catch a glimpse of one another. But when Mary and the mouse both move away, it seems the friendship is at an end... or is it?

This charming tale is just the sort of story I would have taken to heart as a girl, delighted at its opening of hidden vistas (the mouse house within a house), and thrilled at the idea of friendship across seemingly insurmountable barriers. The watercolor, ink and gouache artwork of Barbara McClintock is top notch, perfectly capturing the sense of discovery and wonder in the tale, making this a definite must for all of her fans!

[Kathryn]

Joining my GoodReads friends in applause for this title! It's delightful and I would have loved it as a kid since I really enjoyed books showing similar activities or places but with different perspectives. As we see Mary and the Mouse go through their daily activities, Mary in the big house and Mouse in a little house in Mary's big house, we hope that there will be a friendship--and sure enough, a tentative one begins to evolve in a very cute way! While I may not have guessed it was a McClintock book just from the illustrations, they do have a charm and sense of details that I love from her books like "Adele and Simon" ;-)

[GraceAnne]

Sometimes you pick up a picture book, and it is just exactly what you want and need at that moment. This is utterly charming. The text worms its way into your heart, and the pictures are -- well, delicious is not too strong a word. McClintock is simply wizard at putting so much sweet and true detail into her pictures that you can look at them again and again and find more to delight in.

[Betsy]

Two lives run parallel to one another within a single home. Upstairs there is Mary who lives with her mother, father, sister, and brother. Within the walls of the house there is also a mouse that lives with her very own mother, father, sister, and brother. As we watch, both Mary and the mouse go to school, learn the same things, and one night they both drop some cutlery while cleaning up after dinner. This tiny event means that through a mouse hole Mary sees the mouse and the mouse sees Mary. They'd love to talk but Mary has been warned off of mice, and the mouse has been warned off of humans. Still that doesn't stop them from dropping cutlery each night and waving to one another. Time goes on and the mouse and Mary grow up. Mary has a daughter named Maria and the mouse has a daughter called, simply, Mouse Mouse. They happen to live in the same house, and one night Maria drops her books when Mouse Mouse does the same. The difference? After a little time both Maria and Mouse Mouse become brave and meet one another so that they can whisper a loud and happy, "Goodnight!" before going to bed

First of all, praise be to Schwartz and Wade for knowing enough to pair McClintock and Donofrio together on this story. Since the artist normally works in a world of delicate lines and tiny details, I firmly believe that nobody could have complemented this tale better with her imagery. Miniscule details are one advantage, but there's also the fact that Ms. McClintock had the wherewithal to know how to mirror her two separate worlds. I loved watching how McClintock chose to break up the panels. Sometimes you'll have two long pictures on one page, showing the child and her mouse equivalent on one side and two different but similarly aligned images of the same sort on the other. Other times there are full two-page spreads that do the same thing. And then SOMETIMES McClintock switches everything about and will put the mouse on one page and the human on the other in a very different manner. A good illustrator knows the importance of keeping the reader's eye moving up and down, back and forth about the pages and Ms. McClintock does just that.

I should be a good girl and not forget to compliment Ms. Donofrio on her story as well. Lest you start thinking that this is some didactic treatment of "overcoming prejudice" and the like, allow me to reassure you that the lesson here is subtle. Far more obvious is Donofrio's smart wordplay and efficient use of her sentences. It allows for a book that is very touching, even when there isn't an abundance of weepy sentiment going on. It is spare, crisp, clean writing.

Some people have compared this book to Mary Norton's "The Borrowers", when viewing the tiny household items that make up the mouse homes. I'm not entirely certain the comparison is fair, but it's probably the best there is out there anyway. With its beautiful illustrations, thick paper, and sublime watercolors I'm just utterly charmed by the pairing of Donofrio and McClintock. Perhaps if we are all good little librarians and parents and dutifully buy this book in droves then maybe we'll be lucky enough to have another pairing of these two women in the near future. Hey, man. A girl can dream.

[Lisa Vegan]

So, will this book do for mice what Charlotte's Web did for spiders, making them less scary and more likable for children?

I was greatly amused by this story. I really liked the illustrations too, although they seemed to be slightly different from theBarbara McClintock illustrations in other books that she’s illustrated. She’s a wonderful artist and I plan to read all the books that she’s illustrated.

I didn’t like the end; I personally can think of at least one other finale that I’d have enjoyed more, but the story in general, of two generations of girls and mice was funny and sweet and definitely different, and so I forgive the end, which isn’t all that bad really.

[Gillian]

Beautiful illustrations and the sweetest story!

[Sasha]

I'm almost ashamed to admit it, but I actually got a little teary-eyed at this book. It was probably the full-circle nature of it, where Mary's daughter meets the mouse's daughter, and how curious and respectful they were of each other, that got me. Reminded me of watching "Stuart Little" as a child and longing for my own little rodent to play with and take on adventures. So funny that as a child, mice are revered in the realm of fairy tales and fantasy (NIMH, Rescuers Down Under, Brambly Hedge, etc.), but as an adult, if you found a family of mice in your home, you'd be freaked out and livid. Definitely gave me pause.

[FM Family]

This and Where’s Mommy are books I never would have found if not for goodreads and our family loves them. I love these parallel stories (almost always about mice) like Phoebe Goldman’s Something from Nothing where you can enjoy all the little details of the two houses side by side. The storyline is a little weird (having read the sequel first I was surprised that all Mary and the Mouse ever do is wave at eachother) in its time jump, but I thought it worked and was fun. I just love this idea of parallel stories and a secret silly friendship. Definitely recommend.

[Mizzy Mint]

This is a cute book. It definitely gave me nostalgia from the vibes alone. It's giving Beatrix Potter or Heather Buchanan. It's about a little girl and a mouse who are friends from a distance. It isn't until their children meet later in life that their parallel lives truly meet. The just wave and are aware of one another for most of their lives. I love how cute the images are. My favorite little detail is when the little girl grows up and goes to college and little mouse moves out of the house, they each have a poster of the other in their rooms (though mouse's is painted on leaves). So cute!

[Cheryl]

Aww.... The concept is nice, the illustrations fabulous (look at the detail, look at the decor, look at the pictures on all the walls!), but what happened!? The older Mary and Mouse had to keep their friendship secret, but why did the younger do so? And why did it just end, with no actual payoff? And why was the font of a loud whisper as big as a cross-country shout?

[Diana]

Sweet story, and I greatly enjoyed the parallels (although I do wonder at the similar aging of the different species...but that's an adult problem. Kids won't care.) between the main characters and watching the relationship transfer tot he daughters was charming. Don't miss the sequel!

[Jo Oehrlein]

This would be fun to "read" together even with a little one who isn't reading yet because everything that Mary does, the Mouse also does. Maybe they couldn't do it the first time, but I bet by the 2nd time through they could do most of the Mouse parts.

[Uri Cohen]

A charming story with great illustrations. But it doesn't really end until the second book, Where's Mommy? So try to read them together.

[Susan]

Delicious story line--full of love--and about loving creatures different from you and crossing boundaries--and wonderful old-fashioned illustrations.

[Dianna]

I loved this book. Oh, wait, I thought I read picture books for my son. Well, he loved it, too. Who wouldn't love a little mouse house in the walls?

Mary drops her spoon on the floor every night and the mouse drops hers, so they can take a peek at her. Mary and the mouse grow up and move away, but they—and their children—end up together again in the end.

The pictures are so perfect for this story! My son loved the cross-sections so you could see into the mouse's house. The pictures in the first half have a Victorian feel and reminded me of The Borrowers. It's definitely its own book, though, and worth checking out.

[babyhippoface]

A little girl and a mouse who share the same house (one tiny one inside the great big one) both drop a utensil every night at dinner in order to drop to the floor and secretly wave to each other. As the years go by, the girl and the mouse, whose lives are amazingly similar, continue waving to each other until they both move away. Before long, however, Mary's daughter and the mouse's daughter are continuing the tradition inside a new home. The story isn't much, but kids will enjoy examining the illustrations to find all the ways the lives of Mary and the mouse are alike (clothing, room decor, hobbies).

[Becky]

This is a very simple story. A little girl named Mary lives in a house with her family. In the house is a smaller house, a secret house, in which a family of mice lives. Mary and the little girl mouse slowly become aware of each other, and become friends.

Mary grows up, gets married, moves into her own house, and has a daughter. Inside Mary's house is a smaller house, home to a family of mice. One day, Mary's daughter notices the little girl mouse, and they make friends. That's it. Very simple.

What puts this book over the top for me are Barbara McClintock's illustrations, with their vintage look and jewel tones.

[Jennifer]

Not sure when the last time was I read a picture book I loved so much that I hugged it. Mary and Mouse must keep their awareness of each other a secret, since mice and humans shall not mix, but their friendship evolves through their daughters. I worried the story might confuse younger readers - there's a lot of parallel storytelling going on here. It might be a bit above their heads, but that doesn't seem to matter, as my daughter asked for a third and forth and fifth reading in a row. Shelve this one alongside other whimsical reads like "Clara and Asha" and "Flotsam."

[The Library Lady]

Mary lives in a big house. The mouse lives in a little house inside the big house. Mary goes to school. The mouse goes to school. Their lives go on in parallel, until one day, they discover each other. And though their lives separate, they come together in the next generation. Delightful.

This is going home for my eight year old, who has "Lucy",an imaginary mouse friend of her own who is very like Mary's mouse!

[Kristen]

This book was just so charming. I loved the way the illustrations mirrored each other--you could pore over them for a long time seeing the similarities and the differences. And Mary's (and the mouse's) hippy clothes when she went off to college in a Volkswagon Bug--so awesome! Just really well done and a delight to read.

[Elizabeth K.]

Somehow I got this backwards and didn't review the first one right away. As a big fan of books with illustrations that show mice living in little houses furnished with people items repurposed into mouse items, this book is a hit. My three year old also liked scrutinizing the detailed illustrations, and we liked the parallel plots. As a bonus, this book features a mouse named Mouse Mouse.

[Alia]

If I had the extra time I would have spent a lot longer staring at the details of each page. The little mouse world is facinating and I loved how the clothing and housing in both worlds changed with the times. The story is pretty delightful too!

[Paula]

While Mary, a girl whose family lives in a big house, is learning things at school, a young mouse whose family lives in a small house within the big one is learning the same things at her school, and when the two eventually meet they become friends.

[Briana Apuzzo]

This children's book is a cute tale gapping two generations between mother and daughter. Mary and her mouse companion met when they were children. They then grew up adn lost touch but their daughters end up befriending one another. Maybe some things stay the same over time. :)

[Stacia Leigh]

Nicely illustrated picture book showing two different perspectives...one of the mouse and one of the girl. I remember when I was a child, I loved anything small. As an adult, I still enjoyed seeing the details in the little mouse's house.

[Jen]

A second grader gave me this recommendation and what a terrific book it was. I was most tickled by the illustrations. I send a hearty wave to Mary and Mouse - and a "Good night!" to Maria and Mouse Mouse.

[rabi]

My 1.5 year old chooses this book over and over again. Luckily the super detailed illustrations give it pretty decent replay value for adults too, even though the story is as straightforward as it gets.

[Mary Raccuia]

This beautifully illustrated book tells the story of Mary the young girl and Mary the young mouse. The similarities of their lives and families. I would suggested reading this book to young children as they explore families and the community they live in.

[Julie]

This one I really enjoyed. I liked the continuity to the next generation. While the illustrations were not the most fantastic ever, they were well done and enhanced the story as they should.

[Kristin]

I love the parallel characters in this clever story!